Skimmer In Flight

[Nicki Gwynn Jones]

Hi Everyone!
Here is one from my trip to Nickerson Beach with Artie back in August. Don't ask how many flight shots I had to delete...:D:eek:
40D 300 f/2.8
F2.8 1/4000
ISO 640
Exp comp +2
Look forward to your comments and critiques!
Best regards to all,
Nicki

[Gal Shon]

Everything here works so well...
Perfect wing position, love the tail, the open beak (that doesn't overlap the wing). I like the Comp as well.
Well done.

[Doug Brown]

Sounds like you had a great time Nicki! I like this image a lot. Not-quite high-key with a great open-bill pose. Nice wing and tail feather position. Impressive DOF for f/2.8; why did you choose that aperture? I'd try to bring out a little detail in the darks.

[Nicki Gwynn Jones]

Hi Gal and Doug,
Thanks for your kind words. Doug, I think that my choice of f/2.8 was an inexperienced BIF photographer's desperate attempt to gain as much shutter speed as possible...:eek::D
Best,
Nicki

[Bill Dix]

Great one, Nicki! Love the diagonal comp, open bill and fan tail. I tried last weekend to catch these guys in flight and came up almost empty. Loss of detail in the blacks is noted. B&W birds are tough.

[Sid Garige]

Very nice image Nicki. Open bill and great banking image.

[Harshad Barve]

lovely image with open bill and nice wing position
TFS

[David Fletcher]

Fabulous image Nicki. Love the pose and open beak.

[Nicki Gwynn Jones]

Guys - thanks so much for all the comments - very much appreciated!
Best,
Nicki

[Stu Bowie]

Hi Nicki, great banking angle, and good to see the fanned tail. I like the open beak, and overall, you have exposed this nicely.

[paul leverington]

Beats the pants off anything I have of these guys! The strong diagonal of course makes this one terrific Niki. Plus the open beak. The one thing you might try is to tickle some more detail out of the black-- especially at the eye area. A beauty!

Paul

[Nicki Gwynn Jones]

Stuart and Paul, thanks so much for your very kind words. Paul, I shall go back to the raw file and work on the black - I am sure that I have enough detail to work with!
Best,
Ncki

[Axel Hildebrandt]

I like the high-key exposure, pose, composition and the fact that the open bill does not merge with the wing.

[Juan Carlos Vindas]

Very nice image. The picture tells the story. Love the open beak and wing details. It's amazing how well focused the bird is at f/2.8!

[Nicki Gwynn Jones]

Axel and Juan Carlos - thanks so much for your input - much appreciated!

[Kiran Poonacha]

Killer one indeed, loved the expo, super pose and the open bill puts it over the top.. congrats...