Horned Grebe - A Second For Me :-)

[Daniel Cadieux]

The second of two Horned Grebes that came close enough for worthwhile photography this past Wednesday (great way to spend a day off from work!!). This one had a deeper hue of red to his eye, plus a faint red line running down from the eye down to and onto the bill...very cool if you ask me! Light was quite variable and changing by the second at times...sometimes losing and gaining over two stops of light. Great exposure practice.

Canon 7D + 100-400L @400mm, aperture priority, evaluative metering, 1/800s., f/6.3, ISO 800, natural lightm handheld, about 80% FF, minor specks removed from water via spot removal tool, and a bit of blue added to an otherwise dull water colour.

[Grace Scalzo]

This is lovely, the way that he is cradled by the wave gives a nice feeling to your photograph.

[Randy Stout]

Daniel:

The smooth waves do look very good with him, good shooting angle, exposure and sharpness.

Eye looks more dramatic on this one.

Cheers

Randy

[Dumay de Boulle]

Prefer the colors on the first one you posted, love the waves in the water...Great detail

[Stu Bowie]

Hey Dan, having looked at both of your images, I prefer this one. The overall exposure/lightness does it for me in this, together with the softer blues. Of course, the eye is a killer, and I like the wave in the FG. Congrats on adding this guy to your files.

[Marina Scarr]

Ditto Grace. "Lovely" was the first word that came to my mind, and I do love the way he is set in the waves. Great angle and the colors all work so well together.

[Bill Dix]

Beautiful bird, nestled in the water in grebe-like fashion. Congrats on getting the species. The eyes on both posts are interesting -- I think I like this one better.

[Mark Itol]

Gorgeous shot, Daniel. Love the wave, shooting angle, and the subtle colors. I feel there is too much space above the bird.

[Doug Brown]

Love the low shooting angle and the sharpness. That eye freaks me out! I wouldn't mind a bit cropped off the top.