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Thread: Little Egret

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    Default Little Egret

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    This is my favourite shot from a recent shoot. I was especially pleased to get the whites exposed correctly in camera, so no need for any adjustments there. I also have a version with more room around the bird and the full reflection, but decided on this tighter crop. Basic adjustments in acr and ps. Cheers.

    D500/500PF, 1/4000th sec@f8, iso640, manual mode, hh.

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    Really great job on the whites Paul! I like the crop you decided to go with, but sometimes like the reflection better depending on how defined the reflection was? Would love to see a comparison

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    Lifetime Member gail bisson's Avatar
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    I agree, the whites look great.
    Nice fluffed up pose with good HA.
    Only thing I wish for a smoother water surface. I have "this thing" about ripply water.
    I always find that the ripples pull my eye away and they also can ruin a nice reflection.
    Windless mornings are so rare here in Nova Scotia so I am constantly battling the" ripply water look". Getting lower can sometimes improve things but I am
    thinking there may have been a croc nearby preventing you from gettng lower or in the water! haha!
    Do your little egrets have yellow feet? (like our snowy egrets?)
    Gail

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    Hello Paul,
    very nice control of exposure. I like the puffed feathers for interest. Do the lores change color and if so to what color if in breeding plumage?

    Thanks for sharing

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    Default Little Egret less crop

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    Thanks so much for the replies and feedback.
    Kurt: here's the almost full frame version as requested. Cheers.
    Gail: Nice to hear from you. Yes, a smoother water would have been nice. No crocs at this location...lol Yes, Little Egrets have black legs and yellow feet.
    Ann: Here's something I found online. Despite my books and bird description material I sometimes have difficulty with breeding/non breeding colours etc

    When breeding, the Little Egret develops characteristic plumes on the back of the head, lower throat, and back. Particularly distinctive are the two or three thin, lanceolate crown plumes, which can be up to 16 cm long. The elongated feathers at the base of the neck are lanceolate distally. Lax back plumes are long, exuberant, and slightly recurved, but do not extend beyond the tail. At the height of courtship, the bill is black and lores turn red, as do the feet in yellow-footed birds. The lores then fade through white to the yellow or blue grey color of nonbreeding birds. Other soft part colors may differ among populations or individuals.

    Cheers.
    Last edited by Paul Burdett; 04-21-2022 at 02:33 AM.

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    Wildlife Moderator Steve Kaluski's Avatar
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    Hi Paul, nice one and the crop here hasn't been too excessive and so retaining better IQ. I think however you have been very conservative in extracting more detail in the whites, there is a lot more you can tease out, if you feel the need, gives greater definition for sure.

    TFS
    Steve
    Post Production: It’s ALL about what you do with the tools and not, which brand of tool you use.

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    Thanks Steve. In relation to extracting more detail in the whites, what would be your method here? Cheers.

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    Wildlife Moderator Steve Kaluski's Avatar
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    Hi Paul, I quickly tried with a blend mode and curves, but I’m away until the end of next week and so I would need to try something when I’m back. You might find a lights luminosity mask with a layer adjustment like curves, or a simple exposure blend. There are many ways it’s just getting the correct adjustment and the laptop isn’t equipped with all that I have on the towers, but soon rectified in June, a huge update on Mac kit. I will continue to have a play over the next day or so and if something comes to mind I will let you know.
    Post Production: It’s ALL about what you do with the tools and not, which brand of tool you use.

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    Hi Paul, nice clean image of a egret. You call it a Little Egret, here we call it a Snowy Egret. I agree with Steve that there is more detail to pull out of the whites but I guess that is subjective to the person, post processing is different person to person. Nice image, thank you for sharing.
    Joe Przybyla

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    www.amazinglight.smugmug.com

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    Hi Steve. Thanks for that. I know about luminosity masking and the blend modes, so I'll do a bit of work there and see what I come up with. Cheers.

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