Sanderling with Breakfast

[Maxis Gamez]

[IMG]http://www.********.org/bpn/40D/_MG_3541.jpg[/IMG]
Sanderling with Breakfast - S.W Florida

This one from Sunday morning. We had a cloudless day with some nice temperatures. I did some QM to remove few birds from the BG.

Hope you like it.

Canon 40D, 400mm L @ f/8, ISO 400, 1/500 sec, RAW, Handheld, Cropped to help composition.

Thanks!

[Wayne Richardson]

Hi Maxis

A very nice image, but this isn't a Sanderling.;)

Wayne

[Maxis Gamez]

Western Sanpiper?? These guys are so hard to ID. :D

[Daniel Cadieux]

I knew it wasn't a Sanderling because of the hind toes, but as for what it is...?? Semipalmated or Western...at least I know it's a nonbreeding adult!! As for the image itself, it looks great. The post-processing is seemless, I can't tell where the other birds were. Excellent job!

[allanrube]

Very nice pose and lighting. The "breakfast" is an added touch. VG job with the quick masking. My only nit is the bright white in the middle which appears blown on my monitor.

[Ákos Lumnitzer]

Excellent image and PP. Nice and close mate. :)

[bill kominsky]

Whatever anybody says Maxis I so look forward to your posts because to me they are wonderful images and maybe someday mine will look as good, great image capture.

Bill

[Ramon M. Casares]

I'd try to tone down the whites (I see them border hot) but this shot is simply TERRIFIC!!! Big congrats Maxis!

[Judd Patterson]

Wow, this is really nice! I agree with Ramón and the others that the whites are just at the edge and it would be great to tone them back a bit...but the shell in the beak is outstanding. I agree that the ID is certainly a Western or Semipalmated Sandpiper. I'm just not an expert on their id in winter (they can be extremely similar). Very fine work on a day where we never had even saw the sun down here in Miami!!

[Rafael Rodriguez Mojica]

Maxis, certainly a beautiful picture. I love the light and the small clam attached to the Peep's lower bill. It looks very delicate and adds to the composition another dimension. Congratulations.

[Nagesh Mula]

I dont mind that much for the species of the bird ;-).
I liked this pic for its warm color and the shell has added tons to this image.

[Amy DeStefanis]

Hey Maxis! Was that you I saw out at Ft. DeSoto Sunday? I thought I saw someone lying in the sand with a camera.... Could only be one of the SW Florida BPN folks!

:)

Love the image. I never know what these guys are, either.... I have some good ones with others in the background too. Maybe I'll experiment with QM!

Amy D.

[Maxis Gamez]

Hey Maxis! Was that you I saw out at Ft. DeSoto Sunday? I thought I saw someone lying in the sand with a camera.... Could only be one of the SW Florida BPN folks!

:)

Love the image. I never know what these guys are, either.... I have some good ones with others in the background too. Maybe I'll experiment with QM!

Amy D.

Hi Amy,

That was not me.

If you want to learn QM, talk to Robert O'Toole or get one of his PDF guides. You'll love it!

Hope to see you soon and thank you for the words!

Thanks!

[Sabyasachi Patra]

Can't figure out that some birds have been removed. Superb PP skils. You have caught it at a nice moment. Good one.

[Wayne Richardson]

As nobody has stepped to confirm the ID, I’d better do the honours!:D

Daniel & Judd have both stated ‘it’s either Western or Semipalmated’. I agree that these 2 dark-legged peeps should be the species under consideration. I’ll continue with theme by adding that the option is either the very common Western or one of only a few Semipalmated that are said to winter in (extreme) south Florida. A betting man would probably go for Western on that basis alone.
However, you cannot ID a bird solely on probability, so we have look at the features of your bird which is an adult in winter plumage. To my eyes the jizz matches Western perfectly, i.e. large headed & front heavy. I’d even go as far as suggesting it is a male due to the rather short bill.

Cheers: Wayne