Spruce Grouse

Gallery: AvianPosted May 22, 20091,238 views38 comments

This past Saturday morning I got up early and met up with this Grouse on a trail at a local Provincial Park. The light was subdued, as the weather was about to change, we ended up getting over a foot of snow over 3 days.

D200, 600VR + 1.4 tele, 1/50, f6.3, 0 EV, 160 iso, full frame. I opted to clone out a small twig between the bird and the perch. Other than that, selective sharpening on the Grouse only, that's it. I don't care that this lens is heavy to carry around, I Loooove it. Please check out the larger version.

Comments

38 comments

Comment posted by Mark Schiebelbein on May 22, 2009 at 1:12 AM

I like the muted colors in this Gary, they do make the red above the eye really pop as well. Nice perch and comp. also.

Registered on November 8, 2008, 55 Posts, 393 Comments

Comment posted by Rob Drummond on May 22, 2009 at 2:59 AM

Absolutely stunning Gary - like evrything about it.

cheers Rob

Registered on November 8, 2003, 617 Posts, 8267 Comments

Comment posted by Andrea Marzorati on May 22, 2009 at 6:53 AM

Fantastic image Gary

Registered on December 1, 2005, 86 Posts, 589 Comments

Comment posted by Nick Saunders on May 22, 2009 at 7:28 AM

This is real nice Gary. Great to get the whole bird in the shot right down to those feathery feet.The green background is excellent.
Went looking for these recently and dipped.

Registered on February 6, 2008, 321 Posts, 3035 Comments

Comment posted by Hans Spiecker on May 22, 2009 at 8:09 AM

This is just great and a departure from the usual shots of Chicken-like birds prancing about on the ground. The pose, perch and BG are perfect and, like others, the spot of red really catches my eye. Well done Gary!

Registered on March 23, 2006, 366 Posts, 4649 Comments

Comment posted by Robert Bunch on May 22, 2009 at 8:40 AM

Very nice! I like the pose, the perch and the clean bg. The red really pops and the rest of the colors coordinate very well. Well done.

Registered on May 18, 2004, 124 Posts, 2503 Comments

Comment posted by Giorgio Gregori on May 22, 2009 at 8:51 AM

Excellent image : I like the soft light, the wonderful perch, the nice pose and the great sharpness, but overall the red spot, center of gravity of the image.
Giorgio.

Registered on November 16, 2007, 87 Posts, 793 Comments

Comment posted by Avi Hirschfield on May 22, 2009 at 8:56 AM

Great shot Gary this is excellent the Red @ Tawny colours really pop in the subdued colours of BG.
Composition @ habitat are tops

AVI

Registered on November 1, 2003, 518 Posts, 2114 Comments

Comment posted by Ron Bielefeld on May 22, 2009 at 9:36 AM

Super nice especially for the ss you had.

Registered on December 6, 2008, 360 Posts, 7132 Comments

Comment posted by Richard & Gail Buq on May 22, 2009 at 9:40 AM

Really really Nice Gary! I like the black and white tones with the bright red over the eye.

Richard Buquoi
Georgetown, TX

Registered on December 18, 2005, 151 Posts, 811 Comments

Comment posted by Michael Ramos on May 22, 2009 at 9:55 AM

Gary I really like seeing this birds with there natural surroundings you have capture this grouse in a perfect moment,eye contact and sharpness are over the top & composition as well is this a male?
I'm not familiar with this species.

Registered on December 24, 2008, 43 Posts, 281 Comments

Comment posted by Craig Strand on May 22, 2009 at 9:58 AM

Really nice capture Gary. I like the composition and perch. Excellent job on the exposure and his pose!

Registered on March 30, 2008, 416 Posts, 2885 Comments

Comment posted by Gary Gulash on May 22, 2009 at 11:05 AM

Michael, "Is this a male?", yes indeed. He was strutting about on the trail I was on, then would fly up to a perch like this as I advanced down the path. He repeated this several times. I encountered the hen earler on the trail and got some low level photos. Thanks all for the comments.

Registered on January 28, 2005, 879 Posts, 12098 Comments

Comment posted by Wayne Willison on May 22, 2009 at 11:49 AM

Impressive lens. You've brought the grouse to life. Love it.

Registered on April 10, 2009, 292 Posts, 3967 Comments

Comment posted by Greg Schneider on May 22, 2009 at 11:56 AM

Absolutely superb, Gary. The low light really gives the scene a nice tone. The only thing I might suggest is doing a slight cleanup of the needles on the edges of the frame.

Registered on February 9, 2008, 84 Posts, 138 Comments

Comment posted by Richard Ditch on May 22, 2009 at 11:57 AM

A really nice image: wonderfully understated and subtle colors and tones of gray.

Registered on November 1, 2003, 1031 Posts, 12705 Comments

Comment posted by David Schoen on May 22, 2009 at 12:04 PM

very nice image and perfect placement. How long did it take you to get your 600VR?

Registered on November 6, 2006, 1213 Posts, 4587 Comments

Comment posted by Gary Gulash on May 22, 2009 at 2:08 PM

David, surprisingly I made a couple of phone calls and located a place that had a 500 and 600 in stock, so had it in 2 days. The availablity was a factor in making the purchase at this time.

Registered on January 28, 2005, 879 Posts, 12098 Comments

Comment posted by Pedro Martín Barto on May 22, 2009 at 3:28 PM

Great photo; the larger version is really stunning!

Registered on December 31, 2003, 6 Posts, 194 Comments

Comment posted by Simon Bennett on May 22, 2009 at 3:44 PM

Wondetful clarity, pose and subdued setting.

Registered on February 4, 2007, 350 Posts, 4614 Comments

Comment posted by May Haga on May 22, 2009 at 8:52 PM

Very, very nice. I have yet to see one of these birds. I like the almost black and white effect with the red crown. Great pose. Excellent feather detail.
May

Registered on February 22, 2007, 714 Posts, 8470 Comments

Comment posted by Ralph Kerr on May 23, 2009 at 12:46 AM

Excellent Gary, what could I add to the comments of the others? I am glad you are enjoying that lens.

Ralph Kerr

Registered on January 30, 2007, 369 Posts, 852 Comments

Comment posted by Sachin Sajnani on May 23, 2009 at 2:49 AM

I'm quite awestruck looking at this image.
Love the almost monochrome look it has also that has to be the most interesting perch i've seen in a long time.
Kudos to you for lugging the lens around

Registered on December 31, 2008, 12 Posts, 90 Comments

Comment posted by Dennis Plank on May 23, 2009 at 10:30 AM

Nice image, Gary. The palette is particularly pleasing, and as mentioned, they really make the color pop out.

Registered on January 28, 2008, 1767 Posts, 23192 Comments

Comment posted by Mia McPherson on May 24, 2009 at 3:48 PM

Gary,

This is simply stunning.

Wow.

Registered on June 25, 2007, 491 Posts, 12566 Comments

Comment posted by Lon Sharp on May 24, 2009 at 4:07 PM

Gary, this is exceptional in every way!

Registered on December 9, 2007, 258 Posts, 9892 Comments

Comment posted by Nate Chappell on May 24, 2009 at 9:39 PM

Terrific shot and comp, great pose with the tail up and beautiful tones throughout, congrats.

Registered on February 1, 2006, 1158 Posts, 19528 Comments

Comment posted by Pat Sampson on May 25, 2009 at 12:45 AM

I think this is probably as good as it gets Gary. An exceptional image.

Pat

Registered on May 19, 2007, 953 Posts, 15989 Comments

Comment posted by KC Choo on May 26, 2009 at 8:32 AM

Congrats on this image, the WP and the new lens!

Registered on November 15, 2004, 519 Posts, 8278 Comments

Comment posted by Keith A Anderson on May 26, 2009 at 12:17 PM

Gorgeous image, Gary. Don't know how I missed it the first time around. Congrats on a well deserved WP.

Registered on February 13, 2006, 166 Posts, 1818 Comments

Comment posted by Floris van Breugel on May 26, 2009 at 12:53 PM

Excellent pose among some wonderful habitat, well done!

Registered on December 19, 2008, 306 Posts, 4840 Comments

Comment posted by Barry R. Byrd on May 26, 2009 at 2:51 PM

wonderful light and comp Gary, well done

Registered on December 20, 2005, 136 Posts, 970 Comments

Comment posted by Catherine Reilly on May 26, 2009 at 2:57 PM

Yeh, Gary, I'd carry around a lens like that for a shot like this! Superb in every way. What a gorgeous bird. Congrats for the EP!

(Of course after carrying that lens in, someone would have to carry me back out– lens and all!)

Registered on August 16, 2006, 603 Posts, 9192 Comments

Comment posted by Pat Sampson on May 26, 2009 at 6:32 PM

Congrats on the pick Gary. This image certainly rates it.

Pat

Registered on May 19, 2007, 953 Posts, 15989 Comments

Comment posted by Rosemarie Arbur on May 27, 2009 at 2:14 AM

The detail in the grouse is fantastic, and the subdued tones are a perfect background.

Congrats!

Registered on March 19, 2008, 189 Posts, 1644 Comments

Comment posted by May Haga on May 27, 2009 at 1:31 PM

Well deserved EP.
May

Registered on February 22, 2007, 714 Posts, 8470 Comments

Comment posted by Jim DeWitt on June 1, 2009 at 8:01 PM

Don't know how I missed this stunner first time around. A great capture, in addition to perfect techs; it's unusual in my experience to find these guys strutting on a branch like this. Simply excellent, and a very well-deserved EP.

Registered on August 28, 2006, 1240 Posts, 8506 Comments

Comment posted by Verdon on October 17, 2011 at 1:40 AM

What a shot, from quality thru the pose to overall impact, love it, would like to have that in my collection...

Registered on June 10, 2011, 147 Posts, 1444 Comments