I spent this afternoon with Doug Brown, Gary Rouleau, Artie and Denise. The Albuquerque Zoo is one hopping place for ducks! This Wood Duck drake was kind enough to allow me to take his portrait. C&C always welcome...
Canon 7D, 400mm, f/5.6, 1/2000, ISO 640, manual exposure, hand held
Kristin, It was a pleasure to meet you and your Mom today. It was also nice to see Doug again. Thank you so much for your support and coming to the Blurry Day slide show. This is beautiful! The lighting really make this special. I like how you got all the color out of the face including the purple. Nice job!!:)
For the record, Artie told me I should give up bird photography after he saw this on the back of Kristin's LCD. I can see why! It's hard to capture all the nuances in the plumage of a Wood Duck, but you've done a masterful job here. Perfect pose and sharpness too.
Hi, Kristin. Nice job indeed on this portrait. Focus looks to be right on, and I love the light. I agree with Dan except for one thing; the cameras should go to me:)
Well done on a notoriously difficult bird to expose well. I really like that you have captured the subtle greens on the forehead and crown. These often render as black. Sharp.
I think the DOF is very effective here. You did have plenty of shutter speed to trade off for a bit smaller aperture, and it might have been interesting to gain a bit more DOF on a few shots. That shutter speed makes me think you were set for flight shots or lots of movement.
Hi Kristen, It looks as good here as it did on your LCD. Love the purple cheek patch as it is hard to get. Agree with Jim for a bit more d-o-f and lightening the dark feathers on the rear of the head just a bit to bring out more detail. Flight stuff at the zoo pond is rare but possible.
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