American Dipper

Gallery: AvianPosted December 31, 2009155 views13 comments

Shot a couple of days ago by the River of Golden Dreams, Whistler, B.C. It's my last avian shot of 2009. I spent a nice but cold (-8C temp) couple of hours watching this bird feeding and was videoing it as well. Moments after this, it dove straight underwater, but this foray did not produce any food, although it did come up with fish fry a little later.

I decided to present this with more habitat showing.

Happy New Year to all! Thanks for looking!

5D2, 500mm + 1.4X, ISO 800, fill flash, tripod. Laptop processed, so unsure of brightness.

Comments

13 comments

Comment posted by Luke Ormand on December 31, 2009 at 6:36 PM

Fantastic habitat shot... the ice and the water makes me feel cold, and knowing this bird is about to walk along the bottom of the river is amazing. Good location in the frame and the brown/reds on the right add a nice touch.

As for the brightness, the snow/ice looks good in the URC, but the rest of ti looks like it could use a little boost.

Registered on February 4, 2009, 1093 Posts, 7035 Comments

Comment posted by Ron Bielefeld on December 31, 2009 at 6:46 PM

KC, a cold scene for sure. I like the comp you chose and the overall feel of the image. Hardy little birds Dippers, that is for sure.

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

Comment posted by Jimmie Fata on December 31, 2009 at 6:49 PM

Happy New Year KC, This shot is well worth the wait and the first time seeing this bird for me. Thanks for a great introduction.

Registered on December 27, 2009, 14 Posts, 55 Comments

Comment posted by Charlie VanTassel on December 31, 2009 at 7:18 PM

Hi Kwan, So are you getting to like the cold a little better now?

This is fantastic. I like the inclusion of the habitat. A great end to 2009. Happy New Year to you too!

Registered on October 18, 2006, 644 Posts, 4801 Comments

Comment posted by Dennis Plank on December 31, 2009 at 11:07 PM

Nice ice and water, KC. Good bird too! Have a great New Year.

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

Comment posted by Cheryl Molennor on January 1, 2010 at 12:26 AM

Very cool image

Registered on June 30, 2009, 300 Posts, 5051 Comments

Comment posted by Gary Gulash on January 1, 2010 at 12:32 AM

The environmental view is excellent, the ice fall on the right is cool, literally! Exposure looks very good from here.

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

Comment posted by Mia McPherson on January 1, 2010 at 8:48 AM

Brr... this image even feels cold to view, but big congrats on such a fine shot of the dipper in its habitat!

A very appealing photo as posted.

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

Comment posted by dan elster on January 1, 2010 at 10:33 AM

Love it! Superb habitiat shot KC!

Registered on September 23, 2005, 299 Posts, 2443 Comments

Comment posted by Jim DeWitt on January 1, 2010 at 2:13 PM

Killer shot, KC. Wonderful work.

Dippers amaze me. The winter in Interior Alaska, despite the temperatures, living in the air spaces between the ice and the water. They are rarely in the open; kudos on finding the bird.

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

Comment posted by Dan Harbour on January 1, 2010 at 7:10 PM

I am always fascinated by these birds. Nice inclusion of the icy habitat.

Registered on January 4, 2008, 113 Posts, 2416 Comments

Comment posted by Ron Dudley on January 1, 2010 at 7:13 PM

This is great KC. The setting is absolutely unique - I really like the swirling water, "flowing" ice and the ice encased rocks. A wonderful BIH image.

You must be healed up now after your mishap if you can sit in the cold for this long. If so, I'm delighted.

Registered on March 30, 2007, 437 Posts, 10915 Comments

Comment posted by Ian Mason on January 2, 2010 at 6:02 PM

He looks really puffed up - hardly surprising. This image certainly conveys the cold very well!

Registered on December 14, 2005, 399 Posts, 2305 Comments