Flying Blacksmith

Gallery: AvianPosted June 14, 2011142 views16 comments

I shot this image on the weekend at the waterworks near Cape Town. I set up on my tripod with the 1d MKiv and 500mm lens and wait for the birds to fly past. I tried to keep to a specific shooting arc where there was some background lit up by the early morning sun.

Camera Model Canon EOS-1D Mark IV
Shooting Mode Manual Exposure
Tv( Shutter Speed ) 1/1250
Av( Aperture Value ) 7.1
Metering Mode Spot Metering
ISO Speed 1000
Lens EF500mm f/4L IS USM
Focal Length 500.0mm
White Balance Mode Auto

Thanks for looking at your crits.

Comments

16 comments

Comment posted by Rob Drummond on June 14, 2011 at 7:06 AM

Sensational Neal - great light and detail. best shot I've seen of this species.

cheers
Rob

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

Comment posted by Patricia Brundage on June 14, 2011 at 7:54 AM

Sensational capture!!!

Registered on March 23, 2006, 1111 Posts, 6531 Comments

Comment posted by Keith Bauer on June 14, 2011 at 8:43 AM

Really beautiful light. Perfect wing position. Your shooting arc looks like it was right on the money to nail a fabulous background to set off the bird. Very nice.

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

Comment posted by John Robinson on June 14, 2011 at 9:39 AM

Superb light on this one.
Great shot.
JohnR

Registered on March 2, 2008, 535 Posts, 2453 Comments

Comment posted by Dennis Plank on June 14, 2011 at 9:43 AM

Beautiful light and an excellent job on the bird, Neal.

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

Comment posted by Kurt Bowman on June 14, 2011 at 9:52 AM

Very good exposure on a tough one to do properly Neal. The whites look like they might be missing a bit of detail, but very little...I don't you clipped them, just seem a small touch hot on my monitor. The stop action and light in general in this image are excellent! Also love the eye. Nice work!

Registered on June 19, 2008, 1005 Posts, 8028 Comments

Comment posted by Ashley Vincent on June 14, 2011 at 11:39 AM

Your efforts and forethought have been well rewarded with this shot Neal, the lighting, the angle you have on the subject, the detail and wingspread are all perfect to my eye, very well done :^)

Registered on March 1, 2011, 154 Posts, 2083 Comments

Comment posted by Jim Hackley on June 14, 2011 at 12:07 PM

Looks like you had a good spot and your timing really paid off, wonderful colors all around. Nice job in getting this difficult contrast type shot with the dark/light colors of the bird, excellent shot, way to go.

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

Comment posted by David Sparks on June 14, 2011 at 3:08 PM

Lovely light on the bird and BG. Great angle on the bird and positions of the wings. Got to like the red eye with catch light too.

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

Comment posted by Simon Bennett on June 14, 2011 at 4:15 PM

Excellent!!!

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

Comment posted by Morkel Erasmus on June 14, 2011 at 5:35 PM

Perfect pose, exposure, BG....sweet image Neal

Registered on March 22, 2011, 385 Posts, 2068 Comments

Comment posted by Nate Chappell on June 14, 2011 at 11:45 PM

Beautiful shot Neal, on my monitor it looks just a touch bright with but I like my images a bit on the darker side. Great wing position and bg.

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

Comment posted by Angela McCain on June 15, 2011 at 12:19 AM

A real eye catcher here. The gold produced by the early sun is stunning. Bird detail is well done with handling of blacks and whites.

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

Comment posted by Angela McCain on June 15, 2011 at 12:21 AM

A real eye catcher here. The gold produced by the early sun is stunning. Bird detail is well done with handling of blacks and whites.

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

Comment posted by Cheryl Molennor on June 15, 2011 at 9:36 AM

Wow neal. No nits from me. The light is beautiful and it really accented the eye. Great bg too.

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

Comment posted by Richard Olsen on June 17, 2011 at 11:30 AM

Well done Neal! It's a beaut!!

Registered on October 19, 2006, 306 Posts, 1571 Comments