Eastern Spinebill

Gallery: AvianPosted June 13, 2010238 views24 comments

The spinebills were using these dead flower spikes as perches before dropping down to feed on Flame Heath - a red-flowered ground cover plant. They were getting hammered by the very aggresive New Holland Honeyeaters.

1D2n 500/f4 1.4X
ISO 640 f6.3 1/400 slight crop for composition. Background is a distant mountain

cheers
Rob

Comments

24 comments

Comment posted by John Tobias on June 13, 2010 at 8:23 AM

Very impressive photo. Thanks for sharing.

Registered on September 12, 2009, 2120 Posts, 6455 Comments

Comment posted by denise ippolito on June 13, 2010 at 9:24 AM

Nice composition and pose. Details look good. Interesting bird!

Registered on December 17, 2009, 202 Posts, 1529 Comments

Comment posted by Keith Bauer on June 13, 2010 at 9:27 AM

Very nice. Interesting perch. BG is a nice compliment to the entire image.

Registered on November 20, 2003, 458 Posts, 4836 Comments

Comment posted by Marie Mitchell on June 13, 2010 at 10:27 AM

Sharpness is astounding on this image! The eye seems to be in perfect focus!

Registered on May 13, 2010, 3 Posts, 117 Comments

Comment posted by Brian Gatlin on June 13, 2010 at 11:01 AM

everything here looks great, Rob. cool bird, nice pose, great light, perch, bg, sharpness.

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

Comment posted by Richard Ditch on June 13, 2010 at 12:21 PM

Nice technicals; interesting bird. Looks like it would be at home here in the AZ deserts. With such a bill it must have preferred food sources.

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

Comment posted by David Chauvin on June 13, 2010 at 1:23 PM

An all around sweet image, Rob. The perch & clean bg really set the bird up to be the center of attention.

Registered on August 5, 2004, 1007 Posts, 5595 Comments

Comment posted by Steve Balke on June 13, 2010 at 1:45 PM

I can only echo the unadulterated praise of everyone else, Rob. Beautiful shot.

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

Comment posted by Dan Harbour on June 13, 2010 at 2:41 PM

Very cool bird. Wonderful pose. Nice deep colors. Great photo.

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

Comment posted by Graham Brown on June 13, 2010 at 4:20 PM

Lovely looking bird with an unusual beak. Looks good on this vertical perch and the background blends very well. Graham

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

Comment posted by Ronnie Gaubert on June 13, 2010 at 4:21 PM

Hello Rob,
Excellent control over the whites/blacks. The fine feather details are great. I'm not wild about the perch but it is what it is and I definetly would not have passed on this opportunity.
Thanks for posting,
Ronnie G

Registered on November 1, 2003, 810 Posts, 3495 Comments

Comment posted by Ron Dudley on June 13, 2010 at 4:36 PM

Very nicely done Rob. Techs and IQ look great, I like the gradation of the background colors, detail is excellent and I like your comp. This perch works fine for me simply for it's interesting nature and character.

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

Comment posted by Simon Bennett on June 13, 2010 at 4:41 PM

Excellent - very sharp - good eye contact - tough bird to get a clean shot of.

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

Comment posted by Monica Siri on June 13, 2010 at 4:50 PM

Wonderful shot, Rob. I like every aspect of this beautiful image.

Registered on September 20, 2009, 132 Posts, 3764 Comments

Comment posted by Cheryl Molennor on June 13, 2010 at 5:19 PM

What a beauty. Great perch,pose ,light and detail Rob

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

Comment posted by Mia McPherson on June 13, 2010 at 5:50 PM

What a great looking species, the red eye stands out very nicely and I love that curved bill. The background colors are very complimentary of the colors in the bird. I like the interesting texture of the dead flower spike.

A wonderful image as posted.

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

Comment posted by Nate Chappell on June 13, 2010 at 7:56 PM

Sweet bird, perch and bg Rob

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

Comment posted by David Haynes on June 13, 2010 at 11:04 PM

Rob,

Looks like you were able to get out either last weekend or this weekend. It really paid off with a fine image. Very good detail, very sharp, nice comp, excellent background, love the perch. What else can I say. Super Rob!

Registered on February 20, 2010, 110 Posts, 1511 Comments

Comment posted by Gary Gulash on June 14, 2010 at 1:27 AM

Just another stunning avian photo from down under, I would be ecstatic to have taken this photo.

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

Comment posted by Pramod Viswanath on June 14, 2010 at 5:17 AM

Love the tonality in the image a lot! Excellent portrait, Rob!!

Registered on December 4, 2008, 60 Posts, 697 Comments

Comment posted by David Sparks on June 14, 2010 at 7:06 AM

Rob:
Another beaut. Stunning bird and the gray BG is perfect for this bird.

Registered on May 26, 2007, 290 Posts, 4270 Comments

Comment posted by Jim DeWitt on June 15, 2010 at 12:59 AM

Killer shot, Rob! Perfect as posted.

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

Comment posted by Derrick Lipinski on June 15, 2010 at 1:21 AM

Magnificent capture, Rob. Wonderful in every way!

Registered on October 5, 2007, 58 Posts, 2039 Comments

Comment posted by Jim Hackley on June 15, 2010 at 4:21 PM

Very nice shot, everything comes together on this one, well done.

Registered on September 17, 2009, 302 Posts, 5535 Comments