Flycatcher

Gallery: AvianPosted October 15, 201076 views7 comments

Flycatcher

This bird didn't hang around long after he spotted me. It appears to be an Eastern Phoebe (Sayornis phoebe). However, I see what appears to be an eye ring. So, I'm uncertain.

I took this photograph on Oct. 7. It was a dull, cloudy day. I like the level of detail retained even at 1000 ISO.

All comments very welcome.

EOS 7D, 400 mm f/5.6: ISO 1000, 1/400 s, f/6.3 (6.6 MP after cropping), usual NR, exposure adjustment, sharpening.

Comments

7 comments

Comment posted by Dan Moore on October 15, 2010 at 10:33 PM

You did well with that ISO. I thought at first that it needed to be tightened up on the crop but it grew on me pretty quickly. I do like the comp , environment and nice head turn that allowed for view of the wings and tail.

Dan

Registered on February 11, 2010, 143 Posts, 1248 Comments

Comment posted by Gary Gulash on October 16, 2010 at 1:48 AM

Hi Steve. I'll go with Flycatcher...since I have a heck of a time telling one from another even with a couple of field guides in hand. His coloration blends in nicely with his habitat. I think the photo might be a bit stronger with slightly less dof for less detail in the background and maybe just a little bit of a crop from the left side to emphasize the bird a little more while still retaining the feel for the environment he choose to inhabit.

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

Comment posted by Mia McPherson on October 16, 2010 at 12:01 PM

Steve,

Love the pose of the bird and the head turn it gave you and I especially like the fluffed uo feathers on both sides of the bird's chest. I like the sharpness of the bird and the foreground weeds/seedheads. Agree with Gary that a touch less dof would have smoothed out the background some more. Still, I like this a lot as posted

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

Comment posted by Nate Chappell on October 16, 2010 at 3:44 PM

I like the head turn you got here Steve. Since you shot this almost wide open you didn't have much room to work with in terms of opening up here. I agree this is an Eastern Phoebe. I'd try a touch more contrast on this shot, that might make him stand out more.

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

Comment posted by Sally King on October 16, 2010 at 3:47 PM

I like the way he has turned to look at the camera. I like that the plants around his perch are in clear focus too.

Registered on December 2, 2008, 416 Posts, 4450 Comments

Comment posted by Monica Siri on October 17, 2010 at 1:18 PM

Steve,
superb head turn and nice fluffed feathers. I like how the neat plants where the bird is perched, make he stands out from the little busy background.

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

Comment posted by Steve Balke on October 23, 2010 at 6:21 PM

Thank you for your very thoughtful comments, everyone. I can see that it might be improved a bit with a different DOF or a different crop or more contrast. However, when I see that much diversity in opinion and knowing how much experimentation I did already before posting this image, I think I'll leave this one as is.

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