Black Scoter

[Michael Zajac]

Canon 1d Mark III
500mm + 1.4x
1/1250 sec at f /7.1
ISO 400
- 1/3 EV


Barnegat

[Axel Hildebrandt]

Nicely caught on the upswell. I also like the eye contact. I might crop a bit off the top, sharpen the bird more and desaturate the bill a few points.

[Paul Kusmin]

Wow, that's one of the best Black scoter shots i've seen in a while.
Were you on shore or in a boat?
I can't say much critical about this shot, other than agreeing with Axel regarding chopping a bit off the top.

[Steve Maxson]

Love the patterns and texture in the water, Michael. Nice smooth background. Good pose by the duck and nice detail in the blacks. I would agree about backing off on the bill saturation a little. Well done.

[Joel Eade]

Great detail in the blacks, I love the crop...it really gives the feeling of riding the wave crest. Maybe toning down the beak, maybe.

[paul leverington]

Wow!! This is really sweet! I like it as is but see Axels suggestion also ---hard to say which is better. I'm thinking if you crop down you might loose the viewers ability to identify what exactly the bg is and certainly how powerful it is. I think it could presented either way and thirdly maybe even with MORE of the wave showing where that then becomes the dominant theme. Course don't know if you have more wave or anything.

Paul

[Fabs Forns]

I am fine with the crop, but agree with the yellow, more visible towards the center of the bill. Very well done regardless, a fine image.

[Grace Scalzo]

Love how he's nestled in the wave. Really nice details in your blacks. He and his mrs only paid a brief, far away visit when we were there.

[Michael Zajac]

Wow, that's one of the best Black scoter shots i've seen in a while.
Were you on shore or in a boat?
I can't say much critical about this shot, other than agreeing with Axel regarding chopping a bit off the top.

Thanks, I shot this from a jetty.

Everyone else thanks for your comments.:)

[Danny J Brown]

Hey Michael - Just scrolling down through the thumbnails and found this beauty. Well done, my friend. This is a striking and unique image. I love the low angle and the big wave. I agree that a little off the top and tone down the yellow a bit and you'll have a definite contest submission here. Fantastic!

[Dave Leroy]

Really nice timing to get the pose and top of wave at same time. Nice details also. Dave

[adrian dancy]

Excellent the image lives up to expectation from thumbnail...I love the sea swell which makes me wonder how the image was made, are you on a boat, shore or even in the water with a 500 lens!...?