Jacana #2 (for Dan B.!)

[gail bisson]

Dan requested a shot where he could see this bird's amazing feet.
Canon 7D
f4 500mm
ISO 400
SS 1/1600
Aperture priority F 5.6
EV + 1/3
Cropped by 15% from bottom
PP in LR3 and CS5. I clone out the stem of a flower that was directly in front of the bird
Comments and critiqued always appreciated and learned from,
Gail

[Ofer Levy]

I like this a lot! Even nicer than the previous image with this huge foot! Would sharpen the face a bit more.

[Dan Busby]

Great reply Gail! I knew you would have a frame that showed those incredible feet, and this one does it in style. Actually, I like this entire image a bit better - nice smooth BG, the action water droplets, great HA and the almost-panic look on the bird as the left leg sinks rapidly into the water. For some reason I think I would rather not have the flower in this image - the bird is too good to share with another strong object. Perhaps a tighter crop from right or some clone work, or both. But still very nice as is.

[PRABIR BHATTACHARYYA]

Gail, what a beauty you've captured!

[Satish Ranadive]

Lovely image.Loved the pose.

[gail bisson]

As Ofer suggested I sharpened the head (and everything else!) I have a confession to make-I have only been sharpening in LR3 and doing the odd contrast mask in CS5 for the past 7 images I posted. I always seem to get into trouble when sharpening the JPEG in CS5. But I did send this back as JPEG to CS5 and followed Artie's suggestion re: sharpening.
Better?
Also, I made an error when I said I cropped 15% from the bottom. That should read 15% crop off the TOP!

[Grace Scalzo]

Super repost, Gail. In addition to the raised foot, I like how the lily pad is depressed...adds to sense of forward motion. What a fun image to view.

[Ken Watkins]

Gail,

Repost is a vast improvement, now that is what I call a big foot, excellent shot

[Jim Crosswell]

Nice image Gail! The repost looks much better. I like the raised foot, water droplets and OOF flower.

[Dave Leroy]

LOvely shot. I like the action of that bird really stepping out. I like the inclusion of the flower although the bird would look pretty good by itself also.

[Gary Hamilton]

Bigfoot lives! But seriously, what a great image. The pose, the water droplets, the detail, all great. I might vote for cropping out the flower, though. Well done.

[Kaustubh Deshpande]

Gail, what timing.....incredible shot. You nailed him at the perfect angle and mid-stride. sharpening has helped a lot. loved the droplets.

[Tin Man Lee]

Love the big feet! The flower nicely added perspective to show how big the bird is. Great job, Gail!

[Melissa Groo]

Repost is much better, Gail! Sharpness is really improved. And a wonderful shot of this incredible bird. I like the flower for balance. That foot is just uncanny! Great timing to capture it this way!

[Karl Egressy]

Amazing shot, Gail in many ways. The repost is an improvement.