You learn something new...

[Beth Goffe]

Captured this sanderling on Saturday at Sandy Hook, NJ. After a pretty gray morning, the sun emerged just a little after this picture was taken. The exposure seemd pretty good but I had to do a little work to lighten the eye. I'm still a bit new to shorebirds so I wasn't aware that some sanderlings do not fly south to spend the winter. I enjoyed seeing them skitter around and over the ice and snow piles on the beach. I forgot how fast they are! And I really can't wait for spring... :)

40D, 100-400L @ 400mm 1/1600s, f/8, EC 0, ISO 400

[Daniel Cadieux]

Nice to see a shorebird on ice...very "cool"! The food morsel is a nice bonus. The conditions were perfect for fill-flash, the eye would have a nice catchlight and the rear half of the bird evenly lit instead of partially shaded. I would crop a bit above and add some canvas at right.

[Robert Amoruso]

Daniel's critique is right on and fill-flash wold have been a handy tool for this image. However, you did well with the available light and you knew the eye needed attention. Nice work.

[Grace Scalzo]

Beth, I like the food tidbit and the icy perch. Not easy birds to photograph as they do not stay still for long.

[Arthur Morris]

Yes, way-cool with the ice. This one needs a bit more head turn towards you. The tidbit is neat too; was it a mussel shell? Sharp, a good EXP, and a good job on the eye. If you could have gotten a foot lower that would have set the body completely against the ice grey BKGR.

[Beth Goffe]

Thanks for the comments, all. Definitely my fault regarding the fill flash. I just didn't want to carry it with me on a long walk through the sand. I did notice that the head angle was slightly off but I liked the shell so much, I posted the image anyway. Artie, I'm not sure what kind of shell it is. I think I did see very small mussel shells which were all purple but this one doesn't have a lot of purple in it.