
by Jim Zablotny
I revisited the blue grosbeak area after work in order to photograph grassland sparrows. The area is a park that has baseball and softball fields, some tall grass prairie remnants, and weedy pasture around all the fields. Sedge wrens, grasshopper sparrows, and savannah sparrows are using the weedy pasture areas for nesting. With a storm approaching, the light decreased rapidly and the wind gusts became stronger which made photographing these sparrows like a whack a mole game at a carnival. This is a female savannah sparrow that was perched precariously on a chickory stem. I was close to the nest so she had her crest puffed up and was chipping to lead me away from the area and I obliged. K5 IIs 600mm f5.6 (1/500 sec at f8.0, ISO 800) Levels, bump in contrast, Dfine 2, Topaz Detail, Cropped for comp...................................Jim
Comments
5 commentsShe's a beauty, Jim. I like how sharp she is and the clear look at her while retaining a background plus a scattering of stems that nicely tell of the tall grasses that are her home.
Not only a good photo, but good comp, detail and a wonderful background. Excellent processing; and to top it off, an excellent and knowledgable backstory!
Nice, Jim. Excellent exposure. Interesting to see the lighter plumage than ours. Good composition and bg.
Nice detail and I like the pose. I do wish the OOF grass/weed on the left wasn't over the top of your subject. It pulls the eye off the subject a little in my opnion.
The bird looks fantastic here Jim, great detail. If it were mine I would crop just a little bit from the top.