Bobbing For Scoters/Interested Drakes...

[Arthur Morris]

On my next to last full day of my holiday visit to the northeast I was at Barnegat with Denise Ippolito in the afternoon. The wind was from the west gusting from 20-30mph and it was choppy. And in the mid-20s. There were lots of great sea ducks close but with all the chop the frustration levels were high. To make matters worse there were hundreds of shorebirds teed up in perfect light but I could not resist the allure of the sea ducks. Alas, I did not do too well :)

I remember thinking that there might be an image of these two males swimming along with a pretty lady and making two frames just trying to get focus on the middle bird and get them all in the frame. Well, I was able to do that by cropping away the upper half of the frame. As I said, bobbing for scoters.

I believe that the bubbles in front of the forward drake indicate that he was actively courting her by vibrating his breast. I need to check that in BONA....

This image was created with the Canon 800mm f/5.6L IS lens and the EOS1D MIII. ISO 800. Evaluative metering +1/3 stop: 1/640 sec. at f/5.6.

Don't be shy; all comments welcome.

[Steve Canuel]

I like the diagonal line of the three ducks. The bubbling crest in front of the lead drake is pretty cool, looks like ice. Also like the subtle look back from the female, almost like she's looking to make sure she's being followed.

[Aidan Briggs]

I agree with Steve on the positives. A great exposure on tricky subjects too. The choppy water adds to the scene. I would have gone for the shorebirds :D

[Colin Knight]

I guess since all of 3 birds are the subject, I would have liked that last one in focus too. Maybe another stop would have done it.

But I'm underqualified to critique Art's work, so take it with a grain of salt. =)

Colin

[Arthur Morris]

I guess since all of 3 birds are the subject, I would have liked that last one in focus too. Maybe another stop would have done it. But I'm underqualified to critique Art's work, so take it with a grain of salt. =) Colin

Hi Colin, Thanks for stopping by :) D-O-F wide open is only a sliver. I was amazed that the first two birds were relatively sharp. I was already at ISO 800 and needed lots of shutter speed to combat the chop. I would have needed many, many more stops to even come close to having enough d-o-f to cover the second drake.

Thanks for helping me to invent a new verbL I have grain-of-salted your suggestion :)

ps: I have already darkened the eye of the third bird and selectively sharpned its head with a contrast mask...

[Colin Knight]

Yeah, I noticed you were at 800mm. But I'm sure when you get that Mark IV, you won't have a moment's hesitation at bumping up to ISO 6400, or more, to get that DOF when required.

Did Denise teach you something while you were shooting with her? =)

Colin

[Arthur Morris]

Hi Colin,

re:

Yeah, I noticed you were at 800mm. But I'm sure when you get that Mark IV, you won't have a moment's hesitation at bumping up to ISO 6400, or more, to get that DOF when required.

As Bill Clinton would say, that depends what you mean by "required..." Actually I am fine with the third bird being de-focused. And folks do not realize what it would actually take to have enough d-o-f to cover all three when they are separated by inches. Go to one of the on-line d-o-f calculators and play around; you will learn a ton.

Did Denise teach you something while you were shooting with her? =)

Yes, Denise taught me quite a bit. I need to get some more lessons from her. :)

[denise ippolito]

Artie, Nice framing! I couldn't get any group shots like this. I didn't know that about the bubbles-very interesting. I couldn't resist the sea ducks either, they were such a challenge and it was a fun day. Hope to get back there this week.:)

There isn't much I could ever teach Art Morris-but he did show me how to properly carry my tripod. It only took me 3 or 4 tries:)

[Arthur Morris]

When you head back to Barnegat don't forget your tent. And I did learn a lot that day.

[Stu Bowie]

Interesting colours on the males, and I do like the slight look back pose from the female. I like their diagonal line across the image.

[Bryan Erb]

I like the diagonal placement of the birds in the frame, and I don't mind the OOF bird. Really must have been difficult timing the shutter release with them bobbing on those waves.