Here comes the Virginia Rail!

[Daniel Cadieux]

We have a great local spot for these guys. This particular spot has small marshes on each side of a footpath with a few families of rails known to be inhabitants. I set up the audio, lay flat on the ground, and hoped for the best. It did not take long for this image to appear in the viewfinder:) Cropped to 5:4 ratio, but otherwise full-frame. The only thing I wish here is better foot/leg separation, but I'm very happy with this nonetheless.

Canon 40D + 100-400L @330mm, aperture priority, evaluative metering, 1/250s., f/6.3, ISO 640, +1 EC, natural light, handheld.

[Ilija Dukovski]

Any image of V. Rail is an achievement, this one is fantastic.
The BG creates a feel of a path/road, unbelievable.
I actually like the merged legs, and the sharp HA,
it shows the "thin as a rail" effect very nicely.

[Raymond Barlow]

well done Daniel, I agree with your self critique, and a stunner of a shot.

[Lana Hays]

Daniel
Colors are outstanding. I'm with Ilija and the creation of the pathway. Just the right touch of in focus greenery to add a nice touch of habitat. I like this one very much.

[Jim Buescher]

Outstanding! I wouldn't change a thing. Only wish the rail's bill had some separation from the edge of the body, either in towards the chest or outwards preferably, but still a fantastic shot as is. Agree, it's not the easiest subject to photograph.

[Ramon M. Casares]

I wish the bill didn't merge with the body, except that, the rest looks great to me! Nice comp, walking pose, ambient/BG, light, colors and detail.
Congratulations!

[Lorant Voros]

Well done, Daniel. You are a master of that. I love the OOF for-and background. Nice pose, great colors and sharpness. Congratulations.

[Stu Bowie]

Hi Dan, I like the DOF in this, and what a great angle of capture. I like the walking pose with the hint of the raised left foot, and this is really sharp. Good overall colours too. Great image.

[Kiran Poonacha]

beautiful one Daniel, loved the angle and the pose.. wished to a better HA though...

[Ákos Lumnitzer]

Awesome effort with exceptional result Daniel, hats off buddy. :) Few aspects of image design have been mentioned, but overall you should give yourself a pat on the back.

[christopher galeski]

good shot Daniel,colors of the bird go well with the BG,nice comp.thanks.

[Simon Bennett]

Wonderful image Daniel, you selection of DOF is perfect. I particularly like how the plane of focus is a wave through the image. Outstanding work.

[Harshad Barve]

Absolute beautiful shot, Agrred with Ramon
TFS
Harshad

[James Salywoda]

Excellent composition Daniel everything worked great here and well executed.

[Gal Shon]

You should be very happy.
I love the setting but not so much the angle (walking towards you) of the bird.
On my monitor it seems a little oversharpened.

[Ivan Miksik]

It's really excellent photo - very nice composition! However better foot/leg separation should be plus still it is very very nice!

[Stephen Stephen]

Congratulations Dan. Wonderful image here. I was there on Sunday but didn't see any rails but I heard a couple. Perhaps I should go back again when I have more time.

[Juan Aragonés]

Very sweet image Dan. Terrific low angle, fantastic cristal clear eyes and I love the balance between OOT and sharp areas. Very, very good... amazing low perspective