one more Black Skimmer

Gallery: AvianPosted July 8, 2011178 views23 comments

Photo taken 10-15 minutes after sunrise on June 21, 2011 at Opal Beach near Pensacola. D700, 300mm f/4 + 1.7x tc, hand held. 1/3200 sec at f/6.7, ISO 400. 50% of full frame. CS5 and LR3 used for sharpening, adjusting exposure levels, and other minor modifications.
Thanks for your comments and suggestions.

Comments

23 comments

Comment posted by Jeff Loomis on July 8, 2011 at 11:12 PM

Wow, that's incredible! Great low pov and the lighting is awesome. Nice job on the exposure, getting detail in the blacks and that wonderful reflection on the underside of the wing. Hats off to ya.

Registered on January 26, 2010, 68 Posts, 719 Comments

Comment posted by Richard Ditch on July 9, 2011 at 12:14 AM

The larger version shows excellent detail and sharpness. Very nice low angle and exposure.

Registered on November 1, 2003, 1031 Posts, 12705 Comments

Comment posted by Dan Roberts on July 9, 2011 at 2:17 AM

Nice capture. Good composition and techs. I love the light reflected under the wings. These birds are one of the most interesting examples of evolutionary adaptation. Nicely done.

Registered on March 9, 2011, 69 Posts, 501 Comments

Comment posted by Howard Cheek on July 9, 2011 at 6:15 AM

I've looked at all three LP's David and this is the winner, hands down

Love the action, techs look very good..
I especially like the POV and comp in this one

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

Comment posted by Keith Bauer on July 9, 2011 at 8:47 AM

Oh my.... This is really nice! Love the POV. The reflected light on the bottom of the wing is fantastic. Nicely Done.

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

Comment posted by Ron Dudley on July 9, 2011 at 10:01 AM

This is superb IMO. Great low angle and one of the most intimate looks at the skimming behavior I've seen. You even got a well defined eye with catchlight and a very good one at that. Wonderfully done Dave!

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

Comment posted by Terry Sohl on July 9, 2011 at 10:22 AM

Wonderful! Great sharpness, light, exposure, techs, but more than that, a great "impact" photo. Would love to see these guys some day, much less get a wonderful photo like this!

Registered on November 1, 2003, 513 Posts, 6889 Comments

Comment posted by David Williams on July 9, 2011 at 10:34 AM

Boy, that's a great definitive shot of this species, David. Love everything about it, and those reflected water lines are pretty cool.

Registered on March 8, 2005, 315 Posts, 2291 Comments

Comment posted by Jagdeep Rajput on July 9, 2011 at 12:46 PM

STUNNING !!!
This is as perfect as one can get, OUT OF THIS WORLD !!!
Jagdeep Rajput

Registered on April 29, 2008, 686 Posts, 2857 Comments

Comment posted by Jim DeWitt on July 9, 2011 at 2:04 PM

Among the best you've posted, David. I especially like the patterns of reflected light under the wings and the eye contact. This is an outstanding photo.

Registered on August 28, 2006, 1240 Posts, 8506 Comments

Comment posted by David Sewell on July 9, 2011 at 5:30 PM

A fabulous shot, of which you should justifiably be proud. My one (minor) criticism is that the water needs a very slight clockwise rotation, about 1 degree.

David

Registered on September 10, 2008, 63 Posts, 801 Comments

Comment posted by KC Choo on July 9, 2011 at 8:08 PM

Sure is a lot to like about this one!

Registered on November 15, 2004, 519 Posts, 8278 Comments

Comment posted by Verdon on July 9, 2011 at 8:33 PM

love the action, quality, light and the pose ...!!! Never had the opportunity to photograph them, but I am always amazed by their hunting technics and skills, thank you for sharing.!!!

Registered on June 10, 2011, 147 Posts, 1444 Comments

Comment posted by Angela McCain on July 9, 2011 at 10:30 PM

I think this is my favorite of your skimmer images. Bit lower angle and more detail under the wing do it for me. The detail in that eye is nearly impossible to achieve. Just fantastic.

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

Comment posted by Dennis Plank on July 9, 2011 at 11:22 PM

Superb angle on this image, David. I love the stretched out body and the raised wing. I can feel this bird slicing through the water. The ripple reflections on the underside of the near wing are great.

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

Comment posted by Steve Balke on July 10, 2011 at 3:29 AM

Excellent capture, David. We have a sharp, close-up view of the bird and great action. It's interesting that the reflection is a particularly attractive aspect of the shot: the wave distortion of the reflection seem to give it a sense of motion; at the same time, because of the distortion, we don't mind not seeing the whole reflection. A "Wow!" shot.

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

Comment posted by Richard Teller on July 10, 2011 at 7:20 AM

You nailed this one, The detail, sharpness and light are great. Great action shot.

Registered on August 23, 2010, 1162 Posts, 6692 Comments

Comment posted by Brian Gatlin on July 10, 2011 at 11:52 AM

fantastic, David. love the light, detail, comp. an outstanding shot of a really cool species.

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

Comment posted by Kurt Bowman on July 10, 2011 at 2:03 PM

A beauty David! Like everything about it, but especially the water reflection on the underside of the wings!

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

Comment posted by May Haga on July 10, 2011 at 2:39 PM

Very cool shot. Love the nice low angle and, of course, the action. Well done.
May

Registered on February 22, 2007, 714 Posts, 8470 Comments

Comment posted by Ken Archer on July 10, 2011 at 5:22 PM

W!!! Awesome photo action photo David!
Nature photography at it's finest.