Killdeer

Killdeer (Charadrius vociferus)

Place: Gilbert Water Ranch, AZ
Date: May 20, 2006 @ 8:01 am
Equipment: Nikon D200, Nikkor AF-S 300/2.8, TC20E (2x), G1325, RRS BH-55, Sidekick
Exposure: ISO 200, Aperture priority matrix metered, 1/180th @ f/11, -1/3rd ec
Raw, PS C32 on Mac G4, moderate crop

Here's another shot that's been moldering in a folder on my hard drive. I sat in the open on the bank of this wet area watching a family with a couple young birds that at times came rather close.

For some reason I find it very difficult to record/reproduce the look of the feathers on these juvie birds – there's little difference between feather definition and over sharpening IMO.

My other primary issue with this shot is the boring light.It was already 8:00 am, and the AZ sun is quite high and harsh that long after sunrise. Direct front light has limited the appearance of shadows but has also made the image a bit flat and boring.

In processing I used the healing brush to eliminate some specular highlights on the vegetation in the background, and toned down a couple of the brigtest leaves.

Honest critiques requested; all comments (positive or negative) appreciated.