Sandhill Crane: First BPN post !!!

[Danny Brown]

Today was my very first time photographing birds in flight. My father (Doug Brown) took me to Bosque del Apache and loaned me some camera gear. This photo was taken not long after sunrise. Comments and critiques are appreciated.



Canon 50D, 400mm, f/7.1, 1/1600, ISO 400, manual exposure, hand held

[John Blumenkamp]

Hey Danny... this looks great! I like the unique pose you've captured here as well as the background, and your composition is very strong. Hope you keep shooting and keep posting more of your images. :)

[Tony Whitehead]

Welcome, Danny. Great first post. Great sharpness and I love the curve of the wings. Looking forward to more of your photos.

[Marina Scarr]

I am impressed by your first post. This could be a never-before-seen SHC pose for BPN! Your bird looks nice and sharp. Stick close to your teacher and you'll go far.

[Danny Brown]

Thanks for the comments. This was one of my few in focus/good photos today, most were either out of focus, not in the middle, or the birds were too far away. I forgot to mention that my dad photoshopped it a bit.

[Kristin Brown]

:D Danny, I am proud of you! This is not only a fantastic first BPN post but a shot to be proud of even as a seasoned photographer! Nice pose, great sharpness and eye contact. Congratulations!:D

[Keith Bauer]

I love the wing position on this Sandhill. A very unique pose. You captured it well. You were also able to get a nice sharp image against the mountain as a background. That is not easy to do. Wonderful shot. Keep shooting. Photography is a wonderful hobby and presents many opportunities. Congrats on a very nice image.

[Judy Lynn Malloch]

Big welcome Danny and lovely first post. Really like the sharp eye contact you have in this image and the beautiful flight and wing position. Look forward to seeing more. Thanks for sharing.

[Dan Brown]

Hey Danny! Welcome! Cool name! Now there are three of use posting here:D. Great, great shot! I really like the wing position that you have captured here! Your father has taught you well! He's a very good teacher! Keep um coming!:)

[Danny Brown]

:D Danny, I am proud of you! This is not only a fantastic first BPN post but a shot to be proud of even as a seasoned photographer! Nice pose, great sharpness and eye contact. Congratulations!:D

Thanks Kristin :D

And thanks everyone else, and yes I do agree that the wing position is pretty uncommon from what I saw today. Glad to have a great teacher! Plus, glad he was there because I didn't think ANY of my pictures were good.

3 Dan(ny) Browns? Wow :p

[Arthur Morris]

Hi Danny, It was nice meeting you on Saturday night and seeing you in the field. The best thing about this image is the sharpness on the face and the perfect EXP. And the framing. While I like the mountains in the background I would have preferred the bird just a tad higher in the sky so that the bill did not merge with the ridge line. As John noted, the wing position is pretty cool. Are the two shadows on the subject's far wing from another bird?

(Note to all: Danny is a fine young man, handsome and polite. A credit to his Dad.)

[gary rouleau]

Danny that is super -sharp and a nice pose. Well Done.

Wow! is right three Dan Browns. I'm pleased know two of them.

gary

[david cramer]

A very unique pose, and the sharpness and detail are good. More separation from the mountain bg would help, but sometimes the timing is what it is. I see you are also shooting hand held, like your dad!

[Katie Rupp]

Very nice, Danny! Excellent exposure, good wing position and sharp! I think your Dad is pretty proud of your first post...as he should be; it's a keeper.
Here's to many more,
Katie

[Danny J Brown]

Hi Danny: Great shot, with very cool wing position and I love the legs as well. But the head is the best part as he placed it perfect in your composition, as if on cue. By the way, you are pretty lucky to have Dad as a photo mentor as he makes some wonderful images for sure.

Danny Brown

P.S. I hope your middle name isn't Joe or there will be some real confusion!

[Danny Brown]

Hi Danny, It was nice meeting you on Saturday night and seeing you in the field. The best thing about this image is the sharpness on the face and the perfect EXP. And the framing. While I like the mountains in the background I would have preferred the bird just a tad higher in the sky so that the bill did not merge with the ridge line. As John noted, the wing position is pretty cool. Are the two shadows on the subject's far wing from another bird?

(Note to all: Danny is a fine young man, handsome and polite. A credit to his Dad.)

Awesome to meet somebody like you too! I actually was thinking the same thing that the head is in a bad place. As for the question, I am not sure. I could see it bein either way. Thanks for all the comments, and help is GREATLY appreciaated. And my middle name is Ryan. I'll respond to other comments later, I'm on an iPod touch.

[Stu Bowie]

Danny, your dad has taught you well. Congrats on your first post, and a good one at that. Although banking away from you, I like the posture. Head nice and sharp, and if possible, I would try and selectively sharpen the far underwing. Looking forward to more.

[Axel Hildebrandt]

Welcome, Danny! Very nice first post, cool pose, good eye contact and sharpness and I also wish the background behind the head were more uniform. Have fun there and keep them coming!

[David Fletcher]

Congrats on your first post Danny. Huge welcome and look forward to seeing more.

[Greg Basco]

Danny, nice work, and I think everybody gave you some good suggestions on how you can keep on improving future images. Tell your Dad I think it looks better than most of his images; maybe he should just give you his camera gear :-)

Cheers,
Greg Basco

[Doug Brown]

I had a great time with you yesterday Danny! You really picked up on the hand held technique quickly and did very well with manual exposure. It probably took me a year before I got an image this good. Congrats! And thanks everyone for all the helpful comments...everyone except Greg Basco! ;)

[Greg Basco]

Fair enough, Doug! And Danny, your Dad's right; it really is impressive that you picked up the technique so quickly.

Cheers,
Greg

[Kristin Brown]

Hey now Greg! I'm second in line!!;)

[Doug Brown]

Are the two shadows on the subject's far wing from another bird?

I think those are the shadows of its own legs Artie.

[James Salywoda]

This is excellent Danny and as far as sharpness goes this is about as good as it gets "Tack Sharp" this is something us flight photographers hope we come home with everytime were out..;)
I hope to see many more in the future well done and welcome to BPN.
BTW: You have an excellent flight teacher of course you are aware of that...:D I'll see you in the coming weeks in SoCal. Doug

[Danny Brown]

I am taking photo 1 in school though, so I am learning a bit how to take photos but more so what to look for in a photo, although i don't think that some of the things I learn about will help me with bird photography.

[Kiran Poonacha]

Beautiful one, loved the focus here, nice details and comp.. congrats..

[Nicki Gwynn Jones]

Hi Danny and sorry to be late to the party, but I spent the weekend on a freezing cold, wet beach in the east of England photographing baby grey seals...:D...oh so cute - will be posting pics soon...:D
Awesome first post - really love the pose, composition and sharpness and of course those beautiful soft Bosque colours.
Bye the way, your Dad is the best - apart from Greg and Kristin of course...:eek::D
Look forward to more of your posts.
Best regards.
Nicki

[Magnus Thornberg]

Hi Danny, It was nice meeting you on Saturday night and seeing you in the field. The best thing about this image is the sharpness on the face and the perfect EXP. And the framing. While I like the mountains in the background I would have preferred the bird just a tad higher in the sky so that the bill did not merge with the ridge line. As John noted, the wing position is pretty cool. Are the two shadows on the subject's far wing from another bird?

(Note to all: Danny is a fine young man, handsome and polite. A credit to his Dad.)

I´m not Danny but i think the shadows are from the birds two legs! You can see the foot in the shadow!

I think this image are pretty cool! I love the sharpness, exposure and the background are outstanding with the mountain!