Malachite Kingfisher

Gallery: AvianPosted April 13, 2016288 views10 comments

Kwando River, Namibia
from moving rowboat
2014:05:18 23:02:52

These tiny birds are the size of a ping-pong ball.
They are also pretty fearless - we were only about 3 feet away when we first saw him, and we had to back up a lot to get within minimum range of the 500mm lens.

D800
500mm
1/200 sec, f/6.3
Mode: Av
Metering: Spot
ISO: 400
White balance: Auto

Comments

10 comments

Comment posted by Richard Sandor on April 13, 2016 at 10:16 AM

Sandy: excellent capture of this beautiful bird. The detail that can be seen in the large version is exceptional. My only suggestion would be to tone down the background a bit as it's quite bright. Wonderful otherwise. Richard

Registered on January 12, 2014, 453 Posts, 1625 Comments

Comment posted by Jerry Austin on April 13, 2016 at 10:31 AM

Lovely capture with great detail. I agree with Richard concerning the brightness of the background.

Registered on January 6, 2012, 651 Posts, 3448 Comments

Comment posted by Dennis Plank on April 13, 2016 at 12:55 PM

Sweet image, Sandy. I love the oof bg in this one-the added texture from the reeds adds a lot to the image.

devil

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

Comment posted by John Neukirch on April 13, 2016 at 2:13 PM

Awesome feather details and tack sharp. A terrific capture of a beautiful little bird. Really pops, I don't mind the relatively bright BG because the deep blue feathers really draw my eye to the kingfisher.

Registered on July 9, 2012, 207 Posts, 1476 Comments

Comment posted by Allen Brooks on April 13, 2016 at 7:02 PM

Love the colors and details in the large version.
Welcome back to Oregon. crying

Registered on July 27, 2011, 262 Posts, 2597 Comments

Comment posted by Ian Wolfenden on April 14, 2016 at 6:26 AM

Haven't spotted your images in quite a while, Sandy, so very nice to catch up with you again !! This is just so good - the background I don't personally find too bright, and I love its textures - the sway of the plants with their delicate tones setting off the rich colours and detail of the bird perfectly. devil

Registered on May 18, 2007, 1108 Posts, 7647 Comments

Comment posted by Jim Hansen on April 14, 2016 at 1:49 PM

This is a real beauty Sandy. Very interesting background behind this gorgeous bird.

Registered on May 5, 2011, 161 Posts, 908 Comments

Comment posted by Charles Gangas on April 15, 2016 at 2:31 PM

Lovely composition and excellent detail Sandy. I find the background works just fine as posted.

Registered on August 12, 2009, 544 Posts, 2414 Comments

Comment posted by David Schoen on April 15, 2016 at 10:17 PM

I suppose it is called a malachite kingfisher because of the head feathers but the body is the color of azurite. Must have been an amazing trip.

Registered on November 6, 2006, 1213 Posts, 4587 Comments

Comment posted by Hans Overduin on April 16, 2016 at 4:43 AM

Wonderful, almost etherial image of this super small Kingfisher ! Love it all way round devil

, Hans

Registered on August 31, 2011, 491 Posts, 3807 Comments