Black-necked Stilt

Gallery: AvianPosted December 6, 20171,051 views8 comments

A lot of these around currently in the Sacramento Valley. Seems I frequently encounter these birds in a backlight situation, so tried to take full advantage of this one. I really like the water being sprayed as the bird withdrew its beak from the water. D500, 150-600 @ 600, 1/640, F13, ISO 1600. HH. Comments and suggestions are always of great assistance.

Comments

8 comments

Comment posted by Keith Bauer on December 7, 2017 at 10:56 AM

Jim:

I like the moment you captured here. The water coming off the beak is really nice. I think the image is underexposed and also has a small blue/grey color cast to it. I made a couple of quick adjustments to solve that problem and also did a little selective dodging around the eye and part of the breast. See what you think.

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

Comment posted by Jim Hansen on December 7, 2017 at 12:26 PM

Small but nice improvements Keith. Thanks.

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

Comment posted by Dennis Plank on December 7, 2017 at 12:33 PM

Nice job on the back light, Jim. I like the water drops and it's a really sweet reflection. I do think bringing up the exposure a bit as Keith did helps.

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

Comment posted by David Schoen on December 7, 2017 at 12:38 PM

I like the composition here with the water droplets. The exposure change that Keith added does help the image with respect to the white balance. You do have an attractive pose and reflection in this image.

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

Comment posted by Bill Leggett on December 7, 2017 at 2:42 PM

Lots to like here, Jim. The nice light and dripping water are a real bonus. I see you shot at 600. Did you happen to back off a bit? I think more room top and bottom might work better. Excellent work all the same.

Registered on July 21, 2004, 706 Posts, 3233 Comments

Comment posted by David Bogener on December 8, 2017 at 10:25 AM

Nice feeding pose and composition with the water drops. I think Keith's post improves. Under these backlite conditions it is difficult to capture the color and detail of these little beauties.

Registered on October 30, 2013, 417 Posts, 1255 Comments

Comment posted by Kurt Bowman on December 8, 2017 at 9:58 PM

Nice pose and like the water droplets on this one Jim. I do like what Keith did with the exposure on the bird and think it helps the image. Nice work!

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

Comment posted by Jim Hansen on December 9, 2017 at 1:19 PM

Thanks everyone for your thoughtful comments. I agree this bird is a bit large in the frame. I have a less crowded version, but there are halos around parts of the bird that I need to work on.

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