pigeon guillemot

[Paul Kusmin]

Hey all, spotted a pair of these guillemots this morning while out on the seawall.
First time I've seen them in breeding plumage.

D300 + 500mm f4 AFS-1 + tripod

Exposure: 1/800
Aperture: f/4.
Focal Length: 500 mm
ISO Speed: 400
Exposure Bias: -1 EV
Flash: No Flash

Thanks for looking :)

[Arthur Morris]

A good EXP, sharp on the eye, and a good basic COMP. With the bird angled a bit towards you, the best HA is to have the head "on sraight", i.e., angled towards you so as to parallel the bird's body. The rock in the l-l-c is unfortunate for two reasons:

1-o-o-f foreground elements are often, as here, distracting.
2-it blocks the view of the legs and the undertail coverts.

[Paul Kusmin]

Thanks Artie, I appreciate the critique.

While I was striving for a cleaner shot than this, in the end I was just happy to get some shots of this semi-pelagic species up close, and in breeding plumage for once.

[Axel Hildebrandt]

Great find and angle. Adding to Artie's suggestions I would raise the color temperature and maybe increase contrast.