Black Skimmer Chick Begging in Scrape

[Arthur Morris]

This image was created early on the third morning of the recently concluded Nickerson Beach IPT with the hand held Canon EF 600mm f/4L IS II USM lens, the Canon Extender EF 2X III, and the mega mega-pixel Canon EOS 5DS R.ISO 800. Evaluative metering +1 stop: 1/500 sec. at f/11. Daylight WB.

Center AF point (by necessity)/AI Servo Expand/Rear Focus AF as originally framed was active at the moment of exposure (as is always best when hand holding). The active AF point fell just below and behind the base of the chick’s open bill. Click here to see the latest version of the Rear Focus Tutorial. Click on the image to see a larger version.

LensAlign/FocusTune micro-adjustment: -5.

Please don't be shy; all comments are welcome and appreciated.

See two more images from this great morning and learn a ton, see the An Early Morning to Remember/17 Good Minutes/Three Special Images/Why Hand Hold the 600II/2X III TC/5DS R Combo? Shutter Speed Considerations. And Big Lens on the Ground Tips blog post here.

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[Glenn Conlan]

Nice early morning light, good eye catch light and super detail

[Isaac Grant]

I love everything about this Arthur. Bird is sharp, the light is perfect and I love the shadow of the beak. Of course the shooting angle is perfect. Have to get low. I have avoided Nickerson all year and have opted to go to Breezy. No people there but you also can't get shots like this there either as the breeding colony is off limits in the private coop. Honestly just got fed up with that place. Silly I know but true. Can't stand it when there are 30 people there, each with $15,000 worth of gear who show up 2 hours after sunrise and shoot at 90 degree angles off the sun. This photo actually makes me want to go back. Next day there is early morning sun I think I will be at Nickerson at sun up. Thanks for the inspiration.

Would you mind answering why you chose to crop the way you did and leave about equal room above and below the bird? In situations like this I often find myself cropping more off of the bottom and putting some more on the top. But this works great as is. Wondering if you could shed some wisdom on this. Meaning when is it better to leave more space below and when not? Certain situations where it works better?

[Kirk Benson]

The harmony of the light, sand, and chick is just beautiful Artie. Love the great eye-level POV, and the open beak is wonderful. The balance of your composition is perfect for my taste, excellent work.

Kirk

[annmpacheco]

wonderfully composed Artie, it evokes the fragility and vulnerability that surrounds this chick. Love how your POV puts our eye on the "struggle" to survive as the sand envelops him. Love the open beak begging for food to survive. top notch, image quality and composition.

[Adhika Lie]

That morning light is beautiful, Art. I also wonder about the crop at the bottom because I think if it were mine, I would crop a sliver from the bottom.

[Tim Foltz]

Artie, love this image, the angle, sharpness and BG are spot on and it's a rare treat to see a skimmer so young, not available to see or shoot in my area.
I might if it were mine cool down the WB a bit just to make the image pop a bit more.

-Tim

[arash_hazeghi]

that sand looks like cream, everything is spot on. Looks like this is a really great spot, as Tim mentioned we have skimmers here but the nesting grounds are usually off limits

TFS

[gail bisson]

IQ is excellent and I love the color tones of the image.The little grains of sand of beak really pop.
Love the open beak and perfect HA.Catch light in the eye looks great.
I like your comp as is but could see a version with a bit off the bottom.
Why F 11?

[Arthur Morris]

Would you mind answering why you chose to crop the way you did and leave about equal room above and below the bird? In situations like this I often find myself cropping more off of the bottom and putting some more on the top. But this works great as is. Wondering if you could shed some wisdom on this. Meaning when is it better to leave more space below and when not? Certain situations where it works better?

Thanks all and good question Isaac. I have been teaching folks for decades to leave 2-3 times as much space above the bird as below. My decision here was pretty much an unconscious one--I was not really aware of what I had done, placing the chick equidistant from the top and bottom frame edges. Perhaps I wanted to include that creamy, out of focus foreground sand.

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[Arthur Morris]

Here is a squished pano version that preserves the oof foreground sand...

[Arthur Morris]

Why F 11?

Thanks. F/8 is wide open with that combo. I usually work at f/9 with the 600 II/2X III. Being pretty close to the bird, I figured that f/11 could not hurt.

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[Arthur Morris]

that sand looks like cream, everything is spot on. Looks like this is a really great spot, as Tim mentioned we have skimmers here but the nesting grounds are usually off limits

TFS

Thanks. Arash.

The skimmers at Nickerson are off limits too and this year, the researchers moved the ropes far, far from any nests, much farther than in previous years. But the birds do not know from ropes. When the chicks are a week or two old they often venture from the nest scrapes. That often takes them outside the ropes where the parent birds or the larger chicks make their own new scrapes. On the wonderful morning that this image everyone kept low and approached slowly and carefully. Many of the young were quite accepting of the photographers. One guy was laying down and had a chick three feet from him that he had not seen as they are perfectly camouflaged. He was there for one hour. When the bird got up and walked to the west the guy was stunned.

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[Arthur Morris]

Artie, love this image, the angle, sharpness and BG are spot on and it's a rare treat to see a skimmer so young, not available to see or shoot in my area.
I might if it were mine cool down the WB a bit just to make the image pop a bit more. -Tim

Thanks Tim. I did cool it down a bit but do like the warm light in the posted image and did not want to destroy the early morning look and light.

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[Daniel Cadieux]

Too sweet. I love the early morning light, the open bill pose, and the shadow of said bill.

[David Salem]

This one looks great Artie. I love the lighting in this and the chick is detailed and well defined in the cloud of golden sand. I think I prefer the comp in the repost but either one will do. Well done

[William Dickson]

Lovely light and detail. I love the facial expression.

Good work

Will

[Marina Scarr]

Love the light and pose, and great details. Agree with Gail on some off of the bottom of original.

[Lorant Voros]

Love the matching colors, the simple tones, magic light and the calling pose. The shadow of the beak behind the bird is a nice addition IMO. I wish to see the nesting site one day....have not found any in Mexico and I just love these birds. TFS.

[Arthur Morris]

Thanks Lorant. Nickerson is worth a visit. There are some colonies in FLA but they are less dependable, more at risk to storms, and less accessible.

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