Lincoln's Sparrow (I think)

[Michael Lloyd]

I had a hard time with the ID of this bird. Sparrow's and Shorebirds are tough...

EOS1DMKIV manual
800mm f5.6L IS hand held

ISO 400
1/800s @f8.0

[Bill Dix]

Michael, I too am sparrow-challenged, and have never gotten more than a distant blurry shot of a Lincoln's; but based on Sibley that seems like a good ID to me. Like to hear what the experts say. Nice pose. 800mm HH @ 1/800s??. I wonder if a tiny bit more USM, or S/H, might bring out a little more.

[Daniel Cadieux]

I'd be tempted to call this one a juvenile Song Sparrow, but they are admittedly similar. Tough light angle rendering most of the right side and below in shadow, and the IQ has the semblance of a largish crop?

Sparrow's and Shorebirds are tough...

Marinate overnight, and cook on low heat...that should make them more tender...

[Raul Padilla]

too dark for me, great pose

[Michael Lloyd]

Michael, I too am sparrow-challenged, and have never gotten more than a distant blurry shot of a Lincoln's; but based on Sibley that seems like a good ID to me. Like to hear what the experts say. Nice pose. 800mm HH @ 1/800s??. I wonder if a tiny bit more USM, or S/H, might bring out a little more.

I finally got a reply from an expert on anther forum (I'm not sure of his qualifications but I know he's highly educated in reptile and bird id. He never misses so I trust his judgement implicitly). It is indeed a Lincoln's Sparrow.

HH with an 800 is a little easier than the 600 that I normally carry. I ran Topaz Adjust on the raw file and then a midtone contrast action that's pretty subtle. That's about it. The funny thing is- I thought that I went too heavy handed on the sharpening S&H killed the look that I was going for so I exited out of S&H.

I'd be tempted to call this one a juvenile Song Sparrow, but they are admittedly similar. Tough light angle rendering most of the right side and below in shadow, and the IQ has the semblance of a largish crop?

Marinate overnight, and cook on low heat...that should make them more tender...

Actually not much of a crop at all. Basically I set the crop tool to 8" x 10" and dragged a full vertical box around the bird. It may be a little soft due to hand holding. I know people rave about hand holding long glass all of the time (I hand hold a lot but it's more about being too lazy to drag the tripod out than anything else ) but generally speaking if the light is low the results aren't going to be stellar.

The "only" reason I shot this little guy was the way the light landed on him/her. I was walking back from an observation deck (observing deep drought where there was once a small lake and alligators). The path I was on and the bird were in deep shadow. When I spotted it, the sparrow had just hopped into a narrow beam of light that lit the "head and shoulders". I would have preferred more light on the head but my lighting assistant was off getting coffee Considering that this is the first Lincoln's Sparrow for me I'm happy with it.

Living as close to Louisiana as I do I'm going to have to add a mix of sauteed diced onion, bell pepper, garlic, and a little jalapeno to some chicken broth and then slow cook (couple of hours) until tender.

too dark for me, great pose

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