Just Passing By

[Leroy Laverman]

I was taking vertical shots of this heron standing in the surf when it decided to leave the scene. Got this one on its way by. Cropped from the top and bottom only to change the aspect ratio. Comments/suggestions for improvement as always are much appreciated. I have another version with the wave leveled and some ocean showing above the crashing wave as well. Not sure which is best for the composition.

Technical
Nikon D80
Nikon 80-200mm 1:2.8 AF-D + 1.4TC
ISO 400 f/7.1 1/1600sec shutter priority, spot metering

[Leroy Laverman]

Here's the alternate crop for comparison. Thanks.
Edit: You're right John - forgot to convert color spaces before saving.

[john crookes]

I like the first version as the second appears to be washed out on my monitor

nice details in the first

[Arthur Morris]

Both are sharp on the eye and the BKGRs are interesting despite the rather harsh light. It appears as if the bird has the nictitating membrane slightly closed in each image. My biggest problem is with the near wing being sliced off at the rear... It seems likely that you could have zoomed wider. (Best to include as much EXIF data as possible; here, knowing the focal length at the time of exposure would have helped us to better help you.)

later and love, artie

[Leroy Laverman]

I was in no way really ready for this shot (rookie mistake). The focal length was 200mm and the camera was 90 degrees from where it should have been. I always forget to zoom when I'm taken by surprise. Definitely need to work on that. I have another shot later that morning were I was more prepared but the bird had just passed me and the head angle is not optimal. In that one I have the entire bird head to feet.

I couldn't decide for sure about the membrane. I figured it was either that or an unfortunate shadow on the eye. Worth trying to clone out?

[Arthur Morris]

I couldn't decide for sure about the membrane. I figured it was either that or an unfortunate shadow on the eye. Worth trying to clone out?

If you are good with Quick Masks, you can select the rear portion of the eye, flip it horizontally, and cover the membrane. You might have to warp it a bit.

later and love, artie

ps; The techniques are detailed in Robert O'Toole's APTATS.