Quack Quack

[Ken Lassman]

Merritt Island NWR, FL

Female Mallard just after Sunrise

Nikon D300
Nikon 300/2.8 VR lense
ISO 400
F/4.5 @ 1/2000
Manual, Hand Held

[Alfred Forns]

Hi Ken You came up with a good one !!!

Time of capture is good, before the bird got past you, good bg and well exposed.

Which you had a better sun angle, the head, front of wings are well lit but the rest of the duck is dark. Can fix in PS but will never have the colors being lit up by the sun. If possible set up with a good sun angle .. those feathers on the wing can really take on neat colors !!!

Tech wise I like the settings having lots of shutter speed and love the the down wing position !!

[Dave Mills]

Hi Ken, Overall good job on this. Agree on the sun angle Al mentioned but I believe you did the best you could under the circumstances...

[Ken Lassman]

Thanks Al and Dave....appreciate your suggestions and comments and mostly your encouragement. I posted this one because I loved the open beak which I thought was a plus. Tomorrow I am going to post the second one which really excited me. It is so true, that the more you know about their particular behavior patterns you will be better prepared to obtain the shot. In addition to practicing with my camera every day I have been studying, observing and remembering what the different birds seem to do. I stayed where I was and thought that she might circle and return...so I watched her circle and return....figuring she would come in much faster I went to 1/4000.....tomorrow you will see the results. I definitely corrected the lighting on the wings but her head was away from the sun....I may never be perfect but I am loving this.

[Dave Mills]

Hi Ken, Your attitude is great. The bottom line to photography is what you personally get out of it.We all need something to get excited about and for many of us photography is the answer. Not only do you learn how to be more competent at your craft but learn a great deal about nature if thats your interest.
No one is perfect but the quest remains...

[arash_hazeghi]

Got the best wing positions and open bill is a plus! Agree with Al about light angle, you can still lift those dark areas in this one too, very nice!

[Lance Peters]

Hi Ken - doing well - big improvement in your images already!!
Like this a lot - agree with AL'S fine critique - just some minor tweaking.
Good show :)

[Alfred Forns]

Looking forward to the next one Ken You are working hard and will see results in no time. Glad your taking a close look at behavior since it will be the key in making many images !!!