Virginia Rail up close

[Dorian Anderson]

Nothing earth shattering; just a close look at a bird that usually keeps its distance.

Was fast enough to close down to f/8 (and adjust shutter to 1/1600, from f/5.6 and 1/3200) for more DOF as the bird ran towards me.

Would love a slight bit more head turn, but I'ms till stoked with this. I put him a bit farther left in the frame than I usually would so that
we can see the characteristic black-and-white baring on the lower flanks. That's the birder in me.......

And yeah, this bird also responded to a tape call, just like my other recent shots of this species.

Canon 600mm f/4 IS on EOS 1DX2
1/1600 at f/8, ISO 800
minimally processed in LR CC

[Eric Patdu]

Wow! I love the colors and details of this photo. Very nice portrait of the rail.

[Paul Burdett]

Not much to dislike here Dorian. Lovely feather detail, colours, HA, eye and complimentary BG. I will say though I do feel it's a little over sharpened? as the overall texture looks a little harsh/crunchy to me, and I do see a slight white halo around the top of the beak, but it's very minimal...maybe from the sharpening process. Minor nits really...I'd be happy to have this one in my files!

[kevin Hice]

Fantastic Dorian everything about it and you don't know how lucky you are. They hardly ever offer a clean shot.

[arash_hazeghi]

love the light, details and the BG. In a perfect world the head would have turned 2-3 degrees towards us to make it just that tiny bit perfect

[arash_hazeghi]

Not much to dislike here Dorian. Lovely feather detail, colours, HA, eye and complimentary BG. I will say though I do feel it's a little over sharpened? as the overall texture looks a little harsh/crunchy to me, and I do see a slight white halo around the top of the beak, but it's very minimal...maybe from the sharpening process. Minor nits really...I'd be happy to have this one in my files!

I don't know what you are talking about mate, it looks perfect to me. over-sharpend ? halo? you need to either calibrate your screen or toss it and get something better

[Daniel Cadieux]

Rich warm light and subject colours make for an appealing combo. Nothing much to add from my end either, just a strong portrait of a beautiful subject.

[John Mack]

You got your money's worth from this rail. Nice light and a killer background.

[Paul Burdett]

Hi Arash. My monitor is an HP Pavilion 27xi. It is calibrated. There is a faint white halo around the top of the beak only, and it does look a little over sharpened to me...but as you have said before, it may be just my eyes...lol. On my crappy HP laptop it looks fine. Perhaps the Spider calibration hardware/software/settings may be at fault...I don't know. Anyhow...here's a link to the monitor. Maybe you'll say it's a crappy monitor. If so...what do you recommend (don't consider price as a factor).

https://support.hp.com/au-en/document/c03616870

[arash_hazeghi]

Hi Arash. My monitor is an HP Pavilion 27xi. It is calibrated. There is a faint white halo around the top of the beak only, and it does look a little over sharpened to me...but as you have said before, it may be just my eyes...lol. On my crappy HP laptop it looks fine. Perhaps the Spider calibration hardware/software/settings may be at fault...I don't know. Anyhow...here's a link to the monitor. Maybe you'll say it's a crappy monitor. If so...what do you recommend (don't consider price as a factor).

https://support.hp.com/au-en/document/c03616870

I am sorry but the HP is just junk. If you want constant high quality display with full hardware calibration consider NEC Pro monitors. not cheap but the best in industry by spec. If that's too much consider getting an iMac, the screen in those is much better by the plastic junk that comes out of a dinosaur like HP or Dell ;)

[Paul Burdett]

OK Arash, I appreciate your comments. I don't think my particular monitor is "rubbish" (based on the specs and comparing with other monitors), but I have been thinking of getting something better for a while. The NEC look good, as does Eizo (but Eizo is more expensive I think). Could you suggest a 27inch NEC model (or do you recommend a larger screen size?) What are you using at the moment. Cheers.

[arash_hazeghi]

OK Arash, I appreciate your comments. I don't think my particular monitor is "rubbish" (based on the specs and comparing with other monitors), but I have been thinking of getting something better for a while. The NEC look good, as does Eizo (but Eizo is more expensive I think). Could you suggest a 27inch NEC model (or do you recommend a larger screen size?) What are you using at the moment. Cheers.

I have the 31” 4K model. The smaller one is not 4K I believe. I had mine for 6 years now so I am sure the latest model has even more bells and whistles.

[Paul Burdett]

Thanks Arash...will check it out.
Did notice this on researching the NEC flagship 31 inch model: Thoughts??


WARNING: This product can expose you to chemicals including Styrene and Formaldehyde (gas), which are known to the State of California to cause cancer, and Lead, which is known to the State of California to cause cancer and birth defects or other reproductive harm. For more information go to www.p65warnings.ca.gov

[Andreas Liedmann]

Hi Paul ... it is quite simple , your monitor is not a so called " graphics monitor" .
These screens are made for image editing /video editing on a high end base and cost a fortune ....
Your HP will be more a "OFFICE" monitor ... i guess .
The High End screens can display Adobe RGB to roughly 100% ... and they can be hardware calibrated , not like yours which will be only software calibrated .

Regarding the " sharpness appearance " ... there should be no big difference , IMHO. AS long as you look at the same 31"or 27" screen in 4K .... from different brands .
And not to forget .... the sharpness is a perceptual thing .

Cheers Andreas

[arash_hazeghi]

Thanks Arash...will check it out.
Did notice this on researching the NEC flagship 31 inch model: Thoughts??


WARNING: This product can expose you to chemicals including Styrene and Formaldehyde (gas), which are known to the State of California to cause cancer, and Lead, which is known to the State of California to cause cancer and birth defects or other reproductive harm. For more information go to www.p65warnings.ca.gov

maybe you are not familiar with our country’s nuisances but this is a generic legal note attached to almost every product sold in CA even sometimes bottles of water. I think it has to do with the plastic wrapping in the packaging material. At the same time you can buy a machine gun with thousands of rounds and no warning is attached to it. Welcome to America!

[Andreas Liedmann]

Hi Dorian ... lovely solid portrait of this guy in some wonderful light .
Love the overall colors and the tonal range ... but think I personally would keep an eye on the red channel , but that is just me .

Good overall IQ

TFS Andreas

[Paul Burdett]

Hi Arash. Interesting! No, I was not aware of the "nuisances", as you put it. The gun reference is almost laughable...wait a minute...it IS laughable. Just as the statement that "guns don't kill people, people kill people" that I've heard from your pro gun people. Maybe if every pro gun person in America ditched their guns for a camera the world would be a better place. Take care.

[arash_hazeghi]

Hi Arash. Interesting! No, I was not aware of the "nuisances", as you put it. The gun reference is almost laughable...wait a minute...it IS laughable. Just as the statement that "guns don't kill people, people kill people" that I've heard from your pro gun people. Maybe if every pro gun person in America ditched their guns for a camera the world would be a better place. Take care.

Amen mate, but common sense like the rest of world is in short supply here.

PS. sorry for hijacking Dorian's post

[Anthony Barsotti]

Really nice portrait of such an elusive species, stopping down definitely worked out for you. Not much else to say here, great capture!

[Arthur Morris]

maybe you are not familiar with our country’s nuisances but this is a generic legal note attached to almost every product sold in CA even sometimes bottles of water. I think it has to do with the plastic wrapping in the packaging material. At the same time you can buy a machine gun with thousands of rounds and no warning is attached to it. Welcome to America!

Thanks for a good belly laugh, Arash :)

with love, a

[Arthur Morris]

1 1/2 degrees toward us would have been fine by me. Otherwise superb.

with love, a