I was experimenting with firing a remote flash with pocket wizards, it was getting dark and there were two nuthatches chasing each other around the feeder and flaring their wings at one another...I caught this one "in the act". 40D, 300 2.8L, 1/125 sec., f/6.3, ISO 640, 430 EXII.
Altho I'm generally not a fan of flash shots, I often do like a lit perch and bird with the bg in deep shade. And I love it when the nuthatches "display" like this.
This seems a pretty good exposure to me, with perhaps just a bit too hot area at the nape... maybe tone the highlights back a little bit there. Close inspection shows over-sharpening at the head, but it actually looks good and has pretty good detail when I lean back in my chair. :)
Hi Joel,
If you were the one setting up the perch here, you would want to replace it with one that's intact. :) It would look much more appealing that way. Love the little bird's pose and you managed to pull off a decent image here. May be a little too flashed? I'd prefer a rectangular crop as opposed to this square presentation, particularly the bird being dead center here. Congrats and looking forward to more! :)
Good for you to be trying something new and different. It is possibly the only way to get an action shot like this one. Good timing. I also like a bit of a crop an dsuggest a bit off the top. Looking forward to more. Dave
Thanks for the comments. I think the over-flashed look with dark background occurred because it was near dark outside but I was still shooting so the effect sort of happened inadverdantly but I kinda like it because it's a little unusual looking. I agrre with a different crop. I'm not sure what you mean about the perch, it looks fine to me. It's just a dead limb from the woods behind my house.
Nuthatch at dusk
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