Parrot Blast Off

[Dick Glover]

These are a mix of Cobalt-winged Parakeets, Mealy Amazon Parrots and Orange-cheeked Parrots. Their diet includes seeds which have evolved to contain toxins to inhibit birds from eating the seeds. The parrots and parakeets have in turn, learned (evolved) that ingesting certain clays, and water seeping through the clays, gives them chemicals to neautralize the toxins. They gather every morning at clay licks throughout the Amazon region for their daily dose of clay. It is quite a tourist attraction as there can be hundreds, or thousands, of birds gathered in a small area.

At the clay lick and spring shown, which is deep in the jungle, the birds were spooked when the banana tree branch visible in the center foreground fell from far above and they blasted off. I was as startled as the birds and am just glad I reacted by pressing the shutter. As the light was very low, we were not really considering flight shots, but cound not have staged this much better. Not sure of the photographic merit, but I like it, and thought some of you might also. Comments welcome.

Taken Jan. 24, 2009, Napo Wildlife Center, Napo Province, Ecuador.
Canon 50D, ISO 3200, f/6.3, 1/125 sec, 28-300 @ 168mm, hand held.
Dick Glover

Dick Glover

[Dick Glover]

Peter,
Long Exposure Noise Reduction was set to AUTO, and High ISO Noise Reduction was at STANDARD. I did not apply any noise reduction. I think if the subject had large areas of low detail, noise would be more obvious. In other words, the noise is probably there, just not showing up, especially if the photo was cropped more.

[Roman Kurywczak]

Hi Dick,
Hmmm...this one may belong in AWF....but will leave that to others to move.

I do like abstracts and I think you captured the environs pretty well....but for my tastes.....I would like one head (or a few more).....especially the central ones.....to be in focus. This is leaning towards more of a total abstraction.....and there again....I would have preferred more blur in the frame. This one just isn't working for me.....but we'll see what others chime in.
PS sombody moved it right after I posted.....spooky!