Black Swan

[Tony Whitehead]

Photographed at a lake ten minutes up the road from home. As the sun sets the light on the hills behind gives a lovely reflection if the water is still. This swan was standing preening in the shallows so sitting higher than if it were floating. I love the curve of it's neck and plumage textures.
Nikon D3s, Nikon 500 f4 VR + 1.4x TC, ISO 1600, 1/1250s f8, monopod.
Critique and advice always appreciated.

[Joseph Przybyla]

Lovely image, Tony. I like the black of the swan against color of the background, beautiful background color, nice composition. The symbol/mascot of the city I live in is the swan. In the lakes there are four species of swans, the Black Swan being one of them. Thank you for sharing.

[Alan Murphy]

Sweet pose and water to die for. I'm wondering if the reflection was worthy to include.

[Stu Bowie]

Hi Tony, excellent exposure on the blacks, the plumage detail shows up so well. Lovely curves to the neck from the pose, and those reds of the bill and eye pop nicely against the blacks. The setting sun on the hills sure creates a stunning finish to the water. Im fine with leaving as much reflection below for the comp, but maybe a touch more on the RHS.

Isnt great to have a location close to your house.

Hope you had a great day.

[Bill Dix]

A lovely capture, Tony. Great comp with a beautiful curved neck, good texture in the blacks, gorgeous bg color. There is a fairly pronounced halo around the bird, which is not uncommon to see on black subjects against light bg.

[John Robinson]

Yes - nice one - great bird texture. This is my problem with reflections! Allin or none in ! Thats the question. Good compromise.
John

[gail bisson]

I like the color palette of this image.
I too, like how the swan is raised up a bit out of the water.Makes for a slightly unusual pose.
I like the comp you chose.
I see a sharpening halo around the head and neck.Easily fixed in PP
Gail

[keith mitchell]

That's a fantastic piece of work Tony, excellent detail on the bird and a BG to die for.

Keith.

[Tony Whitehead]

Thanks for the comments and advice. More reflection wasn't an option unfortunately as it extended to the margin where the water wasn't smooth due to vegetation.

[Tony Whitehead]

Isnt great to have a location close to your house.

Hope you had a great day.

Thanks, Stu. A definite yes to both!

[Karen Pleasant]

Agree with previous comments! Wonderful image....holding the details in the blacks is exceptionally well done! Pose is excellent! I consur that lessening the sharpening halos would improve the image.

[Geoffrey Montagu]

Remarkable image, Tony. The light on the swan is exceptional adding to the color and detail. BG creates a beautiful IQ. Agree with Bill regarding the halo.




Geoffrey

[Diane Miller]

Gorgeous detail in the darks and beautiful color in the BG, as said.

My take on reflections is that they can be successfully cut in two if they begin to fade out a little at the bottom.

In this case, with all the weight low and to the right (even with the reflection softened at the edge), I'd crop a little top and left.

[adrian dancy]

I'd be very pleased with this image. Nice work.

[christopher galeski]

Very nice Tony,good BG and water color,nice pose,good exposure.TFS.

[Karen Pleasant]

Gorgeous detail in the darks and beautiful color in the BG, as said.

My take on reflections is that they can be successfully cut in two if they begin to fade out a little at the bottom.

In this case, with all the weight low and to the right (even with the reflection softened at the edge), I'd crop a little top and left.

Interesting idea to fade the reflection. Thanks for the suggestion!

[Tony Whitehead]

Gorgeous detail in the darks and beautiful color in the BG, as said.

My take on reflections is that they can be successfully cut in two if they begin to fade out a little at the bottom.

In this case, with all the weight low and to the right (even with the reflection softened at the edge), I'd crop a little top and left.

Thanks for the repost, Diane. That's not something I have considered in the past. Your version conveys the idea perfectly.

[Randy Stout]

Tony:

Lovely bird. We have some locally. The males sure are cantankerous! I have always loved the texture in their plumage.

Good advice on polishing the image a bit.

Cheers

Randy

[Ákos Lumnitzer]

Awesome water here Tony!
Love the pose and the placement of the swan.
Didn't realise you have them across the Tasman.
TFS!

[Tony Whitehead]

Awesome water here Tony!
Love the pose and the placement of the swan.
Didn't realise you have them across the Tasman.
TFS!

Cheers Akos. They have an interesting history this side of the Tasman with a conspecific bird predating humans, disappearing and being reintroduced by man and probably augmented by natural dispersal. http://nzbirdsonline.org.nz/species/black-swan