I happened to be at our local marsh when this fellow came through briefly. An immature Little Blue Heron is rare enough here and never observed here in transitional plumage, so I felt some pressure. Don't panic, I told myself -- apply what you've learned from Artie's CD and the folks at BPN: practice stealth and get in close; get low; put the sun at my back (to the extent possible); check the histogram and adjust exposure. I captured a number of more conventional poses including his signature stiff-necked stalking pose; but I liked the action in this one. I didn't have any control over the BG from this location; perhaps some blurring would help? Comments and critique welcome.
Nikon D90 with VR 80-400 mm, at 400 mm; 400 ISO; HH, 1/2500 at F5.6; Aperture prioritity, Matrix metering, EV -0.7.
Love the action - looks quite bright on my screen, you do have a few hot spots here and there and some of the other whties are getting up there - interesting to see what others say. BG is what it is - you could try a little bit of blur. The head / eye area is a little soft - some selective sharpening may help especially on the eyes.
There is a OOF foreground reed on the RHS that is distracting - maybe some quick masks are in order.
Great pointers by Lance Here the solution was better light which we don't always get !! Here it does seem a little over !!! Focus wise the sharpest point seems a little behind the bird Not sure how was your af set up but would suggest using the center point only !!! Crop wise would leave a little more room all around the bird !!! ... neat looking bird !!!
Hi Bill,
I like the captured action...agree with Mr. Peters assessment...the background does not bother me, the bird is in his natural habitat...would recommend on selective sharpening the head area, its a tad on the soft side...keep them coming...:cool:
Little Blue Heron with tadpole
