Laughing Gulls

Gallery: AvianPosted August 25, 2011607 views16 comments

Here are two Laughing Gulls from FL this spring. On this morning at Ft DeSoto, I wasn't able to find any of the waders or shorebirds that I was looking for, so I made the most of my time with some gulls.

I appreciate your critiques and comments. Please view the larger version if possible.

Canon 7D, 500mm + 1.4x TC, lying in the sand with the lens on my backpack.

f/8, 1/2000, ISO 400

Crop to 66% (11.8 of 18MP)

Comments

16 comments

Comment posted by Ron Dudley on August 25, 2011 at 9:13 PM

Interesting behavior and nice exposure Brian. Composition works well too. I don't think the OOF background birds distract at all.

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

Comment posted by Philip Hodgkins on August 25, 2011 at 9:19 PM

Good action. I like that you got them "jawboning" And a lovely catchlight in each eye. Tough to do with gulls.

Registered on July 24, 2006, 2741 Posts, 12349 Comments

Comment posted by Dennis Plank on August 25, 2011 at 11:00 PM

Great interaction, Brian, and a very nice look at the heads. I like this.

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

Comment posted by SandyRichardsBrown on August 25, 2011 at 11:23 PM

Very tough to expose black and white birds - really nice here and very fine detail too.
Great perspective and poses and the OOF BG looks fine to me, although you might tone it down a hair so it doesn't compete with the whites on the gulls.
Really nice!
Sandy.

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

Comment posted by Jim DeWitt on August 26, 2011 at 1:51 AM

Excellent work on those difficult blacks and whites. Very cool behavioral capture. I really like the sense of being in the flock and the background really helps.

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

Comment posted by S Govindarajan on August 26, 2011 at 11:42 AM

Nice capture of the interaction, Brian. Wonderful light and top notch techs. Excellent use of DOF. I think the oof gulls add a lot to this image.

Registered on April 19, 2008, 115 Posts, 1921 Comments

Comment posted by KC Choo on August 26, 2011 at 1:42 PM

Very nicely done!

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

Comment posted by Howard Cheek on August 26, 2011 at 7:46 PM

Some great light Brian. Excellent color, exposure, and detail.
I especially like the comp and interaction here. Have a great weekend!

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

Comment posted by Steve Balke on August 26, 2011 at 7:47 PM

Fine capture, Brian. Seeing the red innards of the mouths makes for an unusual color scheme too. The comp works very well here too: not showing the whole bird allowed you to show us the detail of the action.

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

Comment posted by Ron Bielefeld on August 26, 2011 at 8:01 PM

Love this Brian. Great action and comp. Nice job on a tough exposure. BG is fine with me. Well done.

Registered on December 6, 2008, 360 Posts, 7132 Comments

Comment posted by Nate Chappell on August 26, 2011 at 9:51 PM

Terrific shot Brian, love the reds of the beaks and mouths and the interaction, well done.

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

Comment posted by Michael Lotito on August 27, 2011 at 5:11 PM

Great behavior shot Brian! They are one of my favorite gulls!

Registered on June 26, 2009, 181 Posts, 1558 Comments

Comment posted by Kurt Bowman on August 27, 2011 at 5:15 PM

I really like the iteration on this one Brian! Excellent job on the exposure as well!

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

Comment posted by Angela McCain on August 28, 2011 at 9:31 AM

These are beautiful birds with their mouth agape. Nice interaction you have caught here.

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

Comment posted by May Haga on August 28, 2011 at 12:41 PM

Super image Brian. Great interaction.
May

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

Comment posted by Ashley Vincent on November 6, 2011 at 12:35 AM

Excellent work with this exposure Gary, definitely worthwhile clicking on the larger version! Love the action in this too, as well as the eyes brought to life with those marvelous catchlights!

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