Great Egret in Poor Light

[WIlliam Maroldo]

Sony A900~Sony 70-400G @400mm~ISO 3200~1/1000sec~F5.6~manual exposure~hand held~2-9-2012~5:22 PM~heavy overcast~Quintana, Texas--PS CS5/Topaz Denoise
Here is one that I had severe doubts about when I took the picture; with the heavy overcast and rain I had reached the upper useable limit of ISO (3200) on this camera, dropping the shutter-speed any lower would have been a bad idea, and the aperture was opened wide.
The background was a mess of noise. Fortunately the egret had been exposed correctly.
Used the quick selection tool on the egret, inverted the selection and used a heavy dose of NR on the background. Then unselected everything and applied a mild dose of NR on the entire image. Image was downsized for the web and smart sharpen used. Comments and critique welcomed. regards~Bill

slideshow of my images posted 2010-2011 Texas Photo Forum

[Gordon McKechnie]

I think you've come up with a great result, particularly given the ISO you had to use! Until I read your writeup, I wouldn't have guessed you had used an ISO anywhere near that high. Detail and exposure on egret all look good to me. Well done!

[EzhilSuresh]

William, I like the widespread wings pose. Well exposed. Agree with Gordon about the high ISO quality.

[Kerry Perkins]

Hi Bill, nice strong image - love the pose and action captured. The light works for me and the image looks great for the high ISO. Nice balanced composition and feeding behavior. I would probably lighten the head and neck area, especially the eye which seems a bit dark. Good job with the techs to get the shot!