Coot

I have been trying to get a half decent shot of a coot for ages - and this is the best so far.

I quite like the way the Autumn foliage has coloured the water. It was quite dark under some overhanging branches - the wife was using the 580EX so I had to resort to poping the built in flash to provide a bit of light. Unfortunately got a highlight on the bill which lets it down a bit I think. Image is the full frame.

C&C welcome

Techs
Canon 20D
300 F4LUIS
1/250th @ f5.6 -2/3
Built in flash
raw Processed in Capture 1
Levels/Curves/Saturation/Sharpening in CS2



dennis

Hi Dennis,

This is a great image, i love the colour of the water, the highlight on the bill in the reflection, or on the bird can be easily fixed with the "healing tool" in Photoshop, and my only nit for this image would be that i would have liked to have seen it shot from a lower angle, to get a more intimate feeling with the bird.
If you ever have to use the built in flash again, make sure you carry around an empty semi-transparent film-case, wich you can cut open to place on top of your built in flash, this works as a perfect diffuser.

looking forward to an image on water level!

Greetings,

Jeroen Stel

Very nice Dennis. I too like the colours especially. I haven't a decent shot of a Coot yet after many attempts so I know how difficult they are to perfect. A lower angle would have been better, but you may well have lost the water colour as a result and gained other colours which would spoil this. Overall a very pleasing image.

Graeme

I like this shot.....sort of calming. I think the angle works fine, although most people prefer lowers shots in this case the effect of the ripples surrounding the bird would have been lost at a lower angle.

Hi Dennis, It's a very nice photo with great colours in the water. Only nit is a bit of flashy effect on the eye.

Thanks for your comments. I agree that the flash could have done with some difussion but unfortunately I didn't think fast enough! Hindsight is a wonderful thing. I also appreciate the lower viewpoint crits - I can't really remember if there was anything in the background that might have spoilt the shot - but it was also awfully muddy and I'm not sure I wanted to lay prone in it!!!

dennis

HI Dennis
a very nice picture of the Coot with beautiful water.

Hi Dennis - lIke you I have been after a good coot shot for some time - I would have been proud of this - I don't know what it is that makes getting them so difficult but they are very tricky to capture well.

Hi Dennis

Super image - love the water. My only small nit is the flash effect in the eye!

David

Hi Dennis

Good image. Like the colour of the water and coot looks to be well exposed.

John