Great Blue Heron

Great Blue Heron (Ardea hernias)

It has not been a very good week around here: wet weather; few birds and fewer shots. Today, just when I was thinking about delving into my archives to find an image to post this weekend, I happened to look across a gully and, perched on a tree at eye level, was this GBH. The bird was not too happy to see me as it was trying to sleep. I slowly approached it through heavy bush attempting to get a clear shot. It periodically moved its head from under its wing and glared at me. In this image it seems to be adding insult to the glare by sticking out its tongue. (This has happened to me quite often this year; I'm not sure how to interpret it.) Eventually some fishermen showed up nearby and, combined with me clicking away, were just more than this bird could tolerate. It took off to find somewhere more peaceful to nap.

I did have to remove some OOF branches remote from the bird in this image. It was not necessary to select any portion of the bird in Photoshop though. The reddish horizon is likely part of a tree. I like the detail here. There are feathers visible around its beak and tongue. It has apparently been preening.

1D Mark IV, 400 mm f/5.6+1.4x TC: ISO 1250, 1/800 s, f/8, 10.1 MP after cropping, usual NR, exposure adjustment, sharpening; some remote branch removal.