I know I should be shooting just one but when the water is frozen the mallards congregate in an open water area and here it is a boat ramp at a city park this time.. It is always a challenge when I see so many at once to get as many green irradescant colors and sharp eyes as possible.. any other composition ideas....:?
ISO 400, f 5.6, 1\160, 200 mm
Last edited by Pat Nighswander; 01-19-2008 at 10:49 PM.
Reason: forgot exifers
One of the things I learned from Artie in Bosque is the zoom blur. Even though
the ducks are pretty stationary, might want to try that technique. Who knows
what you might end up with.
Too many ducks at the same time i cannot help myself to get confused . But i must confess it worth to try to see the effects. The suggestion above is worth trying it.
Pat
You sure have a lot of mallards handy. In this image I think that one side is sharp while the other side is more OOF and the light is not illuminating all the birds. Along with the top it doesn't give me anything to draw my attention. I like the creative suggestions that have been given and I think that you could come up with some very interesting images. If you have some cracked corn you can "feed them" and try for some flight images. I usually feed the ducks this time of year when most of the ponds/lakes are frozen. You never know what kind of duck may be in the mix or what kind of opportunities will be there.
thanks Lana for some good ideas.. yes come to think of it I was on spot setting for flying birds and killing time..and evaluative would be the choice.. I was using multigrain bread... cause it floats..I did see some coots but mostly straight mallards at this spot..closer to spring other ones of interest..now everything is frozen and they are gone... but it is warming up...maybe in a few days..thanks everyone for the ideas
Pat
Bread really isn't good for the ducks....that's why I use corn. If you use whole corn it will sink thus giving you a clean looking water and the ducks will dive for it. The cracked corn does float and mess up the water.....but is still good for on the ground.....especially to get the ducks to fly toward you.
Yes I have been told that but it is very deep water...and they aren't diving for the corn unless it is put on the ground.. I just use small amounts of bread to move them to the right light..in the water.. lately haven't been using anything..they do seem to get fed though as I see someone show up with a 5 gallon pail of corn..on a regular basis and many people from apartments show up with a huge variety of stuff from cheerios to..It depends on where the open water is..thanks for the feedback