Gadwall Gang

Gallery: AvianPosted February 23, 201062 views5 comments

Gadwall (Anas strepera): These ducks were busy preening themselves on some sort of residual concrete structure on the shores of Lake Ontario near Toronto, Canada last Sunday morning.

I like this image mainly because of the variety of duck looks we see here. I especially found the character on the far right quite interesting.

I’m not sure how high a quality is this image. The lighting was very difficult to deal with: a combination of shadows and bright sunlight even in the early morning. I’m pleased with the DOF. The noise level is as good as I can make it without degrading detail.

I’d enjoy seeing your assessment of this image.

EOS 7D, EF400mm f/5.6: ISO 500, 1/1000 s, f/11, image is full frame for the 7D (5184 x 3456 pixels= 18MP).

Comments

5 comments

Comment posted by Brian Gatlin on February 23, 2010 at 7:43 AM

Steve, I like the colors of the water and I really like the way the ducks seem to be acting very natural and unbothered by your presence. I do wish that more of their heads stood out well/were better lit. I think a little more DOF may have helped for the ducks in the back. I think the perch is interesting, and does not strike me as overly unnatural looking.

Registered on March 21, 2009, 202 Posts, 4187 Comments

Comment posted by Jim DeWitt on February 23, 2010 at 11:35 AM

An interesting shot, Steve. I like the water, and you've dealt pretty well with some fairly harsh light. I think the primary limit on the image is that the Gadwalls aren't doing anything very interesting, and you were too far away to get really good detail in the birds. There are Gadwall in southcentral Alaska, and I have found them to be surprisingly difficult to photograph...

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

Comment posted by Mia McPherson on February 24, 2010 at 5:56 PM

Steve,

I like the variety of different species in this image and the crisp blue water.

One of my first thoughts when viewing this was I wondered if you could have gotten a lower angle and moved towards your left to get a better angle of light. I know those things are not always possible, but I think it could have strengthened this image.

As presented it does seem a little bright, but I really enjoy the fun pose of the bird on the far right of the frame.

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

Comment posted by Sharon Hallowell on February 24, 2010 at 9:20 PM

Tough lighting conditions here, but a fun image to view anyway. Sharon

Registered on November 1, 2003, 392 Posts, 4810 Comments

Comment posted by Steve Balke on February 26, 2010 at 3:47 PM

Thank you all for your very constructive comments. Increasingly I can appreciate why bird photography is so challenging....and so interesting. I have a way to go before I can really successfully deal with the situation that these ducks presented!

Registered on June 18, 2009, 229 Posts, 2915 Comments