Mallard

Gallery: AvianPosted April 3, 2011199 views19 comments

Mallard (Anas platyrhynchos)

Place: Gilbert Water Ranch, AZ
Date: March 11, 2011
Equipment: Nikon D200, Nikkor AF-S 300/2.8 & TC14E (1.4x), G1325, RRS BH-55, Sidekick
ISO 400, aperture priority matrix metered, 1/400th @ f/11, -2/3rd ev compensation
Raw, PS CS3 on Mac G4, 80% of full frame

Another cooperative Mallard, and another chance to use my 1.4x instead of thr 2x I normally do. As always: Not baited.

Honest critiques requested; all comments appreciated. Please view the larger version if possible.

Comments

19 comments

Comment posted by Charles Gangas on April 3, 2011 at 6:27 PM

Very cool pose Rich...looks as if this Drake is pretty agile.

Registered on August 12, 2009, 544 Posts, 2414 Comments

Comment posted by Joel DeYoung on April 3, 2011 at 6:40 PM

Excellent details and colos. Love the composition, with the placement of the duck on the rhs. Looks like it's testing the water to see if it wants to go for a swim.

Registered on July 12, 2009, 92 Posts, 1074 Comments

Comment posted by Howard Cheek on April 3, 2011 at 7:35 PM

I see lots of character here, not an easy task with a mallard

The techs look excellent, nice and sharp with great DOF/timing.
Like the motion blur at the rt foot with water drops flying about too

Registered on July 24, 2008, 1201 Posts, 10758 Comments

Comment posted by Dan Harbour on April 3, 2011 at 8:25 PM

Great action and beautiful color. I really like the iridescence you captured on the green head.

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

Comment posted by Rick Cloran on April 3, 2011 at 8:47 PM

Super shot as always. The detail is beautiful. The raised foot and water drops are a nice bonus.

Registered on April 6, 2004, 119 Posts, 1989 Comments

Comment posted by Matt Shellenberg on April 3, 2011 at 9:11 PM

I chuckled when I opened this, Richard. It looks like he just stuck his toe in cold water. The splash of water and slight blur in the foot really convey the appearance of motion. Superb exposure and the colors look dead on. Beautiful green highlights in the head and that water color makes an awesome background. Really nice image.

Registered on February 6, 2008, 168 Posts, 3118 Comments

Comment posted by Angela McCain on April 3, 2011 at 9:27 PM

Fun image with that lifted leg and water droplets. Love the iridescence of the head and sharp detail.

Registered on April 19, 2009, 367 Posts, 3589 Comments

Comment posted by Brian Gatlin on April 3, 2011 at 10:37 PM

really nice, Rich. The pose is great, but so is the light, color, comp, and water. detail looks good, as does the DOF.

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

Comment posted by Sharon Hallowell on April 3, 2011 at 10:52 PM

Who doesn't just love a little duck hokey pokey? This is really nice with beautiful light and great colors on the duck. Sharon

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

Comment posted by SandyRichardsBrown on April 3, 2011 at 10:56 PM

Beautiful light, water, pose and colors!
Looks as if he is dancing!

Sandy

Registered on November 24, 2003, 3937 Posts, 12909 Comments

Comment posted by Robert Holguin on April 4, 2011 at 3:32 AM

Wonderful pic. Whats not to like. Great lighting, excellent pose, great perch,and the water color really compliments this duck. The detail is excellent and great eye contact. Well done.

Registered on January 25, 2011, 44 Posts, 294 Comments

Comment posted by Vincent Grafhorst on April 4, 2011 at 2:19 PM

Absolutely beautiful Richard. I think this would have worked very well as a vertical also, with the reflection completely included.

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

Comment posted by Dennis Plank on April 4, 2011 at 4:46 PM

Wonderful detail and light, Richard and the off-balance looking pose adds a bit of fun to the image.

Registered on January 28, 2008, 1767 Posts, 23192 Comments

Comment posted by Doug Gilham on April 4, 2011 at 7:04 PM

Very nice image Richard, great detail and a killer catchlight. Techs are spot on, the only thing I "might" consider is cropping the body out of the reflection, leaving only the leg reflected, but that may leave it too close to the bottom.

Registered on September 20, 2009, 77 Posts, 489 Comments

Comment posted by Ron Dudley on April 4, 2011 at 8:18 PM

Excellent! Love the pose but especially the colors throughout.

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

Comment posted by Rob Drummond on April 5, 2011 at 3:06 AM

Very nice Richard. Like the low angle and the raised foot. Great detail in the larger image

cheers
Rob

Registered on November 8, 2003, 617 Posts, 8267 Comments

Comment posted by Cheryl Molennor on April 5, 2011 at 12:17 PM

Love the colors here. The comp is great as is the detail

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

Comment posted by Nate Chappell on April 5, 2011 at 2:00 PM

Excellent, love the pose, lighting and the bit of splashing here.

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

Comment posted by Steve Balke on April 10, 2011 at 11:23 AM

No question: wonderful detail and color combined with attention-getting action, Richard. I'm not sure if the shot would have been better with the full reflection or not: possibly, but it's nice to see the duck as large as he is in the frame. Also, as posted, the partial reflection is not distracting to me.

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