Stretching the wings

[Mike Poole]

Apologies to anyone who's had their fill of Puffins recently - but they're just so photogenic!

I was set up for the flight shots here, hence the settings, but ever since being pushed to experiment with the higher ISOs I no longer bat an eyelid at ISO 3200

Canon 1dx
100-400 ii @400mm
ISO 3200
1/4000th, f5.6

Mike

[Mike Hitchen]

A very nice collection of textures and tones, Mike. The underwing and chest have an almost translucent quality yet the reflections of the fish are sharp and steel-like. I think the large OOF band on the bottom is a bit distracting but I am willing to forgive that for the quality of the subject.

[gail bisson]

Very nice Mike!
Great wing stretch and I really like the way the puffin's head is slightly cocked towards the viewer.
Exposure is perfect. Fish in the mouth always a bonus.
I wish you had been a couple of inches higher to get rid of the OOF ground. I might be tempted to "shave off" the little OOF mound just below the rump and continue a bit of trimming on RHS of frame to minimize the impact of the ground. You have a really nice BG that would clone in easily.
I find the catchlight a bit large and might be tempted to make it a bit smaller.
A beautiful frame,
Gail

[Jonathan Ashton]

Super puffin great pose catch and details, slight reservation over the OOF base, perhaps one of the relatively few times the image may have been improved if taken from a slightly higher angle. Nevertheless a really super image.

[Alex Becker]

Nice one -- like the wing stretch head angle and fish in the mouth of course. Agree with Gail's suggestions for handling the OOF bit, but to me it isn't a deal breaker by any means. Some of the blacks look just a bit dark to me, but could be a screen difference. TFS

[Adhika Lie]

As has been said above, Mike, the OOF foreground is unfortunate but the feet and pose make the image. I think I will prefer a smoother transition going OOF to the FG. But you have an excellent image here!

[Daniel Cadieux]

I agree about the strip at bottom (at least the feet are fully clear), and I wish the upper left corner was more of that beautiful green background, but you could not have asked for a better wing flap pose. Awesome that it did this while carrying food. Sharp, well exposed.

[William Dickson]

Hi Mike. Great pose you got here, and the details are lovely. Great POV, but not keen on the OOF FG. The BG shows the bird real well. Colours on the bird spot on.

Will

[Mike Poole]

Thanks for the comments everyone, looks like its agreed I should have gone up a couple of inches!

Mike