To Answer My Own Question :)

[Arthur Morris]

Denise Ippolito and I visited the Barnegat jetty this afternoon and found the jetty clear of virtual all ice and snow. And the beach was pretty clear too but for a few foot deep drifts in spots.

Bird populations were down a bit but we had come very good chances and the shorebirds were exceedingly tame.

This submarining Harlequin Duck was photographed with the Canon 800mm f/5.6L IS lens and the EOS-1D Mark IV. ISO 400. Evaluative metering -2/3 stop: 1/800 sec. at f/8.

Don't be shy; all comments welcome.

[Randy Stout]

Artie:

Looks like he is peering, as loons often do. Did he swim around like this for a bit, or was he just caught in a dive?

Well exposed, sharp, like the colors/patterns, esp. on top of the head.

This would work very well when combined with other images to show various behaviours.

Cheers

Randy

[Don Lacy]

Hi Artie, I really want to like this image but I am finding that without more of the head showing I am having to work to hard to trying to figure out what I am looking at. I think if more of the head was showing I would recognize it was a duck at first glance and then enjoy the behavior being shown.

[Sid Garige]

Not your usual killer image Artie.

[Chad Caswell]

Hey Artie, it was nice meeting and talking to you and Denise yesterday. Your harlequin seems shy to see you :p

Chad, Noelle and Matty

[Chris Martinez]

Trying to think of something clever to say but I cant:confused:
The birds must have been a bit thin:p
As Randy says it might work in a montage but to me by itself it just looks like a beautiful blob.

The head angle is all wrong :p

[Michael Bertelsen]

Hello Arthur,

The colors are very nice even the water has a wonderful clarity too it. But I would have liked to see a little bit of the eye.
Even if the eye was visible under the water.

Michael

[Duane Noblick]

I have looked at this one three times since you posted it and I keep coming up with the same thing when I view it....I'm not feeling this one. I guess it proves a point about having some eye contact with the viewer.

[Patrick Sparkman]

I am not too crazy about this one. While the bird's back is interesting, the action is nothing spectacular. Maybe if it was really diving with the head underwater and the "feet flying up in the air." Or if the water was more interesting?

[Mike Tracy]

I'm interested in a self critique.

Happy new year.

[Andrew McLachlan]

I like this one. As Randy states it would look great with other Harlequin images to illustrate a story on harlequins or duck behaviors etc... Well done! :)

[Charles Scheffold]

Technically excellent, as always - but I don't think it stands up on it's on. I agree with Randy that it's a good behavioral shot and would probably work best together in a series of images.

Charles

[Arthur Morris]

Thanks all for you honest comments. Self critique: exposure and sharpness perfect. As for the behavior, I find it interesting. As for this as one of a series of images, yeah, but for me it stands OK alone :) Heck, what do I know? As for no head/no eye, I posted several last year with no head/no eye that I like quite a bit better than this one. Randy: submarining = peering at least if you come from Brooklyn :)

[Charles Scheffold]

Looking at this again, I'm wondering how it would have looked with a drop in polarizing filter... maybe we would be able to see the eye of the submarine? :)

Hey I'm from Brooklyn and submarining wasn't in my vocabulary, but it is now :P

Charles

[Arthur Morris]

I am not sure that the drop-in polarizer would have done much besides cutting down on the light (and thus the shutter speed) as I was working pretty much on sun angle... That said I am not positive about that.

The Brooklyn comment was a joke; what else could "submarining" mean besides peering (in this context???) :)

[Charles Scheffold]

I am not sure that the drop-in polarizer would have done much besides cutting down on the light (and thus the shutter speed) as I was working pretty much on sun angle... That said I am not positive about that.

The Brooklyn comment was a joke; what else could "submarining" mean besides peering (in this context???) :)

I don't own a polarizer for the 800, but I have used one on my 400/5.6 with mixed results. Sometimes helps cut down on the reflections in the water. Just a thought. Would be interesting to try.

If I see any submarining birds this winter, I'll give it a go :p

Charles