Orange-throated Longclaw

Gallery: AvianPosted May 10, 2010137 views14 comments

I have come to realize that I do less and less bird photography and seem to focus only on mammals and landscapes these days. It is funny how these things just happen to develop without any conscious decision. And the few bird pics I do make are sort of opportunistic, like in this case when I was after some Mountain Zebra and this pretty fellow just happened to land in front of me.

Orange-throated Longclaw (Macronyx capensis)
Mountain Zebra National Park, Eastern Cape Karoo, South Africa
Camera Model Canon EOS-5D Mark II
Shutter Speed 1/500 Sec.
Aperture Value f/8.0
ISO Speed 100
Lens EF500mm f/4L IS USM
HH
crop is app 85% of original
Cloned out two green leaves protruding from the left edge of the frame

Comments

14 comments

Comment posted by Gary Gulash on May 10, 2010 at 12:38 AM

If I had Mountain Zebra (or any zebra really) I would probably give up on shooting sparrows. I really like the bi-colored background, unusual and attractive. Very well done in contrasty light, iso 100 helps with the dynamic range I believe.

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

Comment posted by Mauro Pasquero on May 10, 2010 at 4:50 AM

Great capture, Vincent! You should share with us more of these beautiful african birds other than your superb mammals!
Mauro

Registered on January 21, 2010, 650 Posts, 2500 Comments

Comment posted by Brian Gatlin on May 10, 2010 at 8:51 AM

neat shot, Vincent. cool pose and perch, interesting 2 toned bg.

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

Comment posted by Ron Bielefeld on May 10, 2010 at 9:56 AM

Very nice shot Vincent. Love the bird, perch, and the wonderful BG. Well done.

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

Comment posted by KC Choo on May 10, 2010 at 10:36 AM

A great opportunity well captured - it's a beautiful bird!

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

Comment posted by Nate Chappell on May 10, 2010 at 2:28 PM

A beautiful bird well composed on a nice perch, I'm not crazy about the gray part of the bg.

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

Comment posted by Graham Brown on May 10, 2010 at 5:17 PM

Lovely looking bird and I like your choice of composition. It does appear to me though that the leaves are sharper than the bird. Graham

Registered on November 20, 2007, 275 Posts, 1365 Comments

Comment posted by Ron Dudley on May 10, 2010 at 6:58 PM

Never heard of the species Vincent - really neat to see it. I like the pose, light and perch but also wonder if your focus could have been slightly in front of the bird.

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

Comment posted by Sharon Hallowell on May 10, 2010 at 9:56 PM

What a gorgeous bird with those colors. It looks like the focus is on the perch, so maybe a bit of sharpening on the bird would help. Nice Bg. Sharon

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

Comment posted by Luke Ormand on May 10, 2010 at 10:34 PM

Looks a bit like our Eastern Meadowlark. Nice to see another one of you Fauna guys posting a loley bird image...you certainly know what you are doing and I would hope you'll post more in the future.

I particularly like the blue and grey background as they are intersected with a multitude of colors to break up the monotone look.

- Luke

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

Comment posted by Dan Walters on May 10, 2010 at 10:35 PM

Really nice light and color in the bird, I like the different tones in the background.

Registered on October 30, 2005, 405 Posts, 3693 Comments

Comment posted by Vincent Grafhorst on May 11, 2010 at 12:08 AM

I am really surprised about the sharpening comment and this must be a sharpening issue, with the leaves being more prone to sharpening. This image is super sharp on the eye of the bird! Besides, if the focus would be off, I would have binned it!

Registered on February 24, 2006, 504 Posts, 7203 Comments

Comment posted by Jim DeWitt on May 11, 2010 at 12:15 PM

With all those charismatic megafauna around, I'm surprised you even notice things like birds. Although this colorful fellow would be hard to overlook. Good use of the opportunity, nice techs and an interesting pose. The grey/blue line is a bit of a distraction, but I don't see what you could have done about it.

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

Comment posted by Mia McPherson on May 11, 2010 at 9:05 PM

Vincent,

I like the alert pose of the bird, the lovely colors, details in the plumage and the leaves and the light in the bird's eye.

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