AKA White-Cheeked Pintail
canon 20d 500mm f4 IS @ f6.3 1/400 sec iso 800
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AKA White-Cheeked Pintail
canon 20d 500mm f4 IS @ f6.3 1/400 sec iso 800
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A beautiful bird and great setting. I would work on subduing the bright water and giving the bird a lift, along with some NR. Here's my take on this, hope you don't mind:
S&H, reduce brightness on the BG, USM on the bird, some dodging on the head, NI on the BG.
Lovely setting and head angle/eye contact. Like what Colin has done, but feel ideal somewhere between Op and the repost: (specifics being, like the usm and bg done by Colin, but feel the NI and brightening of bird a little too heavy). Thanks for sharing both of you. :)
I'm with David here. Very pretty duck! Image could also use some CCW rotation, and the duck has a blue cast - caused in part by being in the shade.
Both have their own pluses, loved the pose and colours, the reflections adds well to this..
agree with Dave - Colin's lightening of the face is a tad too much - somewhere in the middle would be sharp! lovely pose and dig the colours you captured...
Good-looking specimen, nice setting and eye contact. Another vote for removing the blue cast on the plumage and there seems to be a S/H halo above the head.
I like the re-work. I just PP'd one of these guys last night, wierd!
The water colors are nice, I'd consider cropping it tighter.

Nice colors, details and HA. Original is a bit dark and repost is too bright, the best is in between.
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Thanks everyone for their comments.
Colin, I like your rework, especially the bg. However, in nature the duck is too light in your repost--closer to my OP. I like the brighter eye also, but again in nature the eye is hard to see so clearly.
This duck isn't too common outside the Bahamas, except maybe other Carribbean countries, but we have a lot here.
I like the pose and LOVE the colors on the water. I only wish for a little better light hitting the duck as that would make this incredibly nice!
A striking image, glorious colours in the setting and red of the beak, and more subtle tones of body. Prefer OP.