This was shot in January in Harns Marsh, SW Florida. I didn't bother to process this one at the time, because of the head angle. But when I looked over my past files for calling birds for this month's theme, I revisited this and decided I liked it anyway. The problem with my version of CS5 is that it lacks the Rotate Head tool. I promise to go quietly when the HA Police come for me.
D7000, 500f4 + 1.4, ISO 640, 1/4000s @ f/7,1, -0.7 EV, gitzo and mongoose.
Bill - sometimes to stay with a theme you need to break a rule. Hopefully the HA police will let you off with just a warning. HA aside, I like the wing position and colors here.
OK, so I'm at a loss to understand what HA means, but I do like the image, nice and sharp and spendid wing form, and the open calling bill is a nice touch
This is a good shot Bill.
I really like the wing position and detail in the feathers.I also like the diagonal line created by the body.
The image seems a bit washed out and i would add a couple of points of blacks to the neutrals in selective color to give the image a bit of pop.
I am OK with the HA ( PHIL, HA is head angle)
Gail
Thanks everyone for looking. Gail, good suggestion. Here's a repost with 10% blacks added to neutrals. I think it helps. Too much?
I really wish I had had more chances with this majestic bird. There was one pair in the marsh when we visited in January, and after posing for a few standing shots, they flew off calling to one another, giving me just a few frames in flight before disappearing. So I was happy to get this, HA notwithstanding. This was 75% of FF.
Bill, I'm not great with color casts and the like. But there is somethng slightly off to my eyes with the color on this image. They legs and bill look grey-blue and I think they are black. Maybe it's just me. That aside, I love the topside view and calling pose.
Thanks Grace. This was my only close encounter with these guys, so I'm not that familiar with them. In the RAW file, the legs and bill looked pretty much dark bluish-grey; certainly not black (I actually darkened the bill just a tad.) But there could have been a cast as-shot. I used the white patch on the cheek for WB, and the spot I selected is pretty much neutral - something like 241, 243, 242. The sun was very strong, so maybe there's a glare off the bill. I admit I wondered about it, since the whole bird looks very blue-grey.
Hi Bill, I like this angle, togther with the full view of the wingspread. Good DOF throughout the crane, sharp, and the red crest pops nicely. Calling him to look at you would have been 1st prize.
Sandhill Crane calling
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