Northern Male Cardinal

[jfranciskay]

Got this in the backyard, near the feeder. Not a MM perch, but in the edge of the woods, hence the less than optimal branch. Cloned out branch behind and to the left of head and a flake of snow behind the beak. Fill flash. Heavy overcast as it snowed, about 28 deg F. Looks like we are due for snow for a while, so might as well make do.




Camera Model: Canon EOS-1D Mark II
Flash Used: Yes -1 2/3 compensation
Focal Length: 560.0mm (400/5.6 + 1.4 TC)
Exposure Time: 1/200
Aperture: f/8.0
ISO equiv: 250

[Dan Busby]

Love the wintery setting, composition and the substantial snow flakes. Very nice. I would try to fix the dual catch in the eye and perhaps the red branch behind the bird.

[Arthur Morris]

Love the regal pose and the windblown snow. Do consider selecting and setting up your own perches for complete control of the image. The basics are in ABP II, the advanced pro stuff is in Alan Murphy's Guide to Songbird Set-Up Photography.

[jfranciskay]

Arthur - LOL, I had a perch setup. They just weren't in the mood for it today. ABP II and AM's guide are on my short list, they will be here soon :)

[adrian dancy]

Nice work...nice exposure and colours and of course ....snow.

[Filomena Larson]

This is one of the nicest "in the wild" shots of a cardinal I have seen. Love the detail and sharpness of the bird.
The falling snow just adds to the overall beauty of the capture.

Although set up perches are great in their own right (and I take advantage and enjoy using them) there is something special about a beautiful picture taken in the wild.


Fil

[Arthur Morris]

Arthur - LOL, I had a perch setup. They just weren't in the mood for it today. ABP II and AM's guide are on my short list, they will be here soon :)

Alan's book will teach you how to get them to land where you want them to. Usually :)

[jfranciskay]

Fil - you are too kind...made my day :):):)

[Ed Cordes]

Classic Cardinal pose. I love the snow.

[Peter Farrell]

Excellent image, great detail on the entire bird and the snow adds a lot.
Peter

[Stu Bowie]

Lovely setting, and just love the pose and colours.

[Steve Canuel]

Excellent portrait. Detail and colors are very nice, BG is a complimentary color, and I like how the snow flakes run parallel to the main branch.

[Hendri Venter]

Beautifull. Love the snow and regal pose.

[Danny J Brown]

I agree with Fil on both the image and the beauty of natural perches vs set-ups.

[Arthur Morris]

Hi Danny, Last I checked set-ups are created from entirely natural perches.... Or are you saying that you prefer clutter over simplicity? :)