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Purple Martin
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Purple Martin

by Dennis Plank

Gallery: AvianPosted April 15, 2018230 views5 comments
It was cold and foggy this morning, but not raining and I noticed this male Purple Martin perched on one of the sticks I'd attached to the aluminum rods that were supplied with our Purple Martin gourd set-up.  He was pretty puffed up and didn't seem inclined to fly so I thought it was worth trying a few shots, even with the bright background.

7Dii, Sigma 150-600 C @ 600 mm, hand held, f/8, 1/500, iso 1250, aperture priority, pattern metering, +1 2/3 EV.  Processed in LR & PS CC.  I brought the brightness of the Martin up a bit more in processing.  Cropped to 14.5 MP in a 4x5 format.  Taken this morning at 9:08 am.

Your comments and critiques are always appreciated.

Thanks for taking a look,

Comments

5 comments
Comment posted by Mike Ramy on April 16, 2018 at 10:21 AM
Hey Dennis,
What a beautiful composition and what a perfect perch and subject for that high key background.
The large version is a must see,
Well done . . .  laugh
Registered on June 16, 2012, 567 Posts, 2809 Comments
Comment posted by Steve Thompson on April 16, 2018 at 4:51 PM
This high key presentation is very cool.  This is one that needs to be viewed large to appreciate the remarkable detail in the feathers. Perfect comp, I like this!  devil
Registered on August 7, 2014, 125 Posts, 2319 Comments
Comment posted by Kurt Bowman on April 16, 2018 at 9:00 PM
Really nice detail in the blacks in this on Dennis and that HK BG really makes them shine. Nice work!
Registered on June 19, 2008, 1005 Posts, 8028 Comments
Comment posted by Nate Chappell on April 18, 2018 at 5:11 PM
Very nice high key image showing the dark plumage well Dennis, I might crop a sliver off the top here. devil
Registered on February 1, 2006, 1158 Posts, 19528 Comments
Comment posted by David Schoen on April 18, 2018 at 7:44 PM
Superb job on the dark plumage here.  This really needs to be seen large to savor all the color and textures.  I am generally not a fan of high key but it works very well here.
Registered on November 6, 2006, 1213 Posts, 4587 Comments