Great Blue Heron

Gallery: AvianPosted October 30, 2011126 views7 comments

Great Blue Heron (Ardea herodias)

Place: Riparian Institute, Gilbert, AZ
Date: October 12, 2011, 6:56 am
Equipment: Nikon D300, Nikkor 300/2.8 AF-S, TC20E (2x), G1325, RRS BH-55, Sidekick
Exposure: aperture priority matrix meter, ISO 400, 1/800th @ f/8
Raw, PS CS3 on Mac G4, modest crop

I know some won't care for the “hand of man” elements here, but I couldn't pass up this shot and composition.

I love the light, and I love the strong graphic lines of the planks.

Honest critiques requested; all comments appreciated. If possible, please view the large version before commenting.

Comments

7 comments

Comment posted by Howard Cheek on October 30, 2011 at 2:05 PM

I agree, great light and attractive warm colors Rich.
The very unusual sharp angled lines of the perch make this one unique..
Well done.

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

Comment posted by Steve Balke on October 30, 2011 at 8:40 PM

Very unusual shot, Rich. Although the light is beautiful, my first reaction was that I didn't like it: it's not only that the hand of man is evident but more than that, the hand of man completely dominates the surroundings; I'm so accustomed to a natural habitat. However, stepping away from the usual shot, I began to look at this as I do a work of Photo Art. The GBH here is so well integrated into the image that it looks like it's part of the framework. That made me smile. We have here a very strange apparatus indeed!

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

Comment posted by Jim DeWitt on November 1, 2011 at 12:33 AM

Love the light and agree the sharp angles are an interesting feature. But what in the world is the heron standing upon?

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

Comment posted by Richard Ditch on November 1, 2011 at 1:06 AM

But what in the world is the heron standing upon?

I think this is meant to be a nesting platform for an Osprey. It went up within the last year in one of the ponds at the Water Ranch. I've seen an Osprey on it a couple of times - once being dive-bombed by an unhappy avocet. More often I see a flock of Eurasian Collared Doves whose population has exploded in the last year or two.

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

Comment posted by Ron Dudley on November 1, 2011 at 9:12 PM

Rich, I agree - the graphic lines are strong here, as is the light. And the shadows on the bird and the wood add to the mix.

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

Comment posted by Harry Harris on November 1, 2011 at 10:26 PM

Love the image Richard. The structure really grabs my attention but does not distract from the Heron. I thought cropping off some on the Left side just enough to eliminate the sky so the vertical pole would be the left margin might be nice IMO

Skip Harris

Registered on August 2, 2010, 169 Posts, 741 Comments

Comment posted by Ray Whitt on November 2, 2011 at 6:17 PM

Love the light and the angles. Nice composition and nice graphic image.

Ray

Registered on May 27, 2011, 92 Posts, 2619 Comments