Last Light Lazuli

Gallery: AvianPosted May 13, 2010193 views21 comments

Lazuli Bunting. The background is naturally dark while he is in the last light that enters my yard in the evening. I applied a little selective brightening to his back. Only other post processing was unsharp masks. I like the way the shadowed background sets him off! Now I'm planning on some deliberate moving of various perches to see if on another evening I can duplicate this effort with a less heavy perch. I might have to go buy a potted tree to time this just right!

D200, 200-400 @400, about 75% of frame, f4.5 1/350, iso200

Suggestions and observations welcomed.

Comments

21 comments

Comment posted by Keith Bauer on May 13, 2010 at 11:57 PM

Lon: Very nice light on the bird. Really shows up in the larger version. Perch is OK, but sounds like your idea will produce a nicer image. The composition of this one feels cramped on the bottom and too much on the top.

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

Comment posted by Gary Gulash on May 14, 2010 at 1:03 AM

What Keith said....and, love the color of that background. With such a great subject it would sure be worth doing whatever you can to get him to try out some other perches.

Registered on January 28, 2005, 879 Posts, 12098 Comments

Comment posted by antino cervigni on May 14, 2010 at 1:51 AM

Very good light colors details and composition

Registered on April 17, 2010, 70 Posts, 202 Comments

Comment posted by Mauro Pasquero on May 14, 2010 at 6:27 AM

Great job, Lon! Beautiful bird and great BG.
Mauro

Registered on January 21, 2010, 650 Posts, 2500 Comments

Comment posted by denise ippolito on May 14, 2010 at 7:09 AM

Very nice sharp details and pose. The colors look very good so does the lighting. Well done.

Registered on December 17, 2009, 202 Posts, 1529 Comments

Comment posted by Onno de Rover on May 14, 2010 at 7:56 AM

Hi Lon, I often skip these kind of pictures but this one caught my eye. I Actually like your "heavy" perch. Where you on a tripod or just a steady hand?

Well done

Onno

Registered on December 29, 2009, 38 Posts, 63 Comments

Comment posted by Ralph Kerr on May 14, 2010 at 8:24 AM

A beautiful shot of my favorite bird

Registered on January 30, 2007, 369 Posts, 852 Comments

Comment posted by Lon Sharp on May 14, 2010 at 8:53 AM

Onno, in response to your question, I almost always try to rely on some kind of support. Many large animals are captured with makeshift or actual beanbags or tripods from a hide. Birds, including this one, from a tripod.

Registered on December 9, 2007, 258 Posts, 9892 Comments

Comment posted by Monica Siri on May 14, 2010 at 10:09 AM

Beautiful bird and beautiful shot, Lon.

Registered on September 20, 2009, 132 Posts, 3764 Comments

Comment posted by Kurt Bowman on May 14, 2010 at 10:16 AM

Like the colors, detail and light Lon. Very nice. Hope to see you posting more over in the avian section!

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

Comment posted by David Chauvin on May 14, 2010 at 2:06 PM

Lovely bird in beautiful light.

Registered on August 5, 2004, 1007 Posts, 5595 Comments

Comment posted by Daniel & Loana on May 14, 2010 at 4:00 PM

Wonderful shot!

D&L

Registered on October 7, 2008, 166 Posts, 3044 Comments

Comment posted by Brian Gatlin on May 14, 2010 at 5:26 PM

fantastic light, Lon. perch is just fine for me, though I might bring down its brightness a little. I agree with Keith on the comp.

Registered on March 21, 2009, 202 Posts, 4187 Comments

Comment posted by David Sparks on May 14, 2010 at 6:28 PM

Lon:
Wonderful light and very nice detail. I hope you strategy of luring the bird to other perches works.

Registered on May 26, 2007, 290 Posts, 4270 Comments

Comment posted by Cheryl Molennor on May 14, 2010 at 6:41 PM

Love it Lon. The light on the little guy is great

Registered on June 30, 2009, 300 Posts, 5051 Comments

Comment posted by Dan Harbour on May 14, 2010 at 10:10 PM

I have seen a Lazuli only occasionally. A few photos but none this good. I like the lighting and pose. I would like to see more of your photos of him. Even better, I would like to get some Lazuli photos of my own. Nice capture.

Registered on January 4, 2008, 113 Posts, 2416 Comments

Comment posted by Dennis Plank on May 15, 2010 at 12:27 AM

Beautiful image, Lon. Excellent detail and I really like the lighting. Good luck with the perches.

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

Comment posted by Ajit Huilgol on May 15, 2010 at 1:53 AM

The larger photo is just superb, Lon! The details on the bird and the completely dark bg make this perfect!

Registered on December 19, 2008, 302 Posts, 2055 Comments

Comment posted by KC Choo on May 15, 2010 at 9:04 AM

I'm with the others regarding your comp, but what a delightful photo in last light. They are such beautiful birds!

Registered on November 15, 2004, 519 Posts, 8278 Comments

Comment posted by Mia McPherson on May 16, 2010 at 9:31 AM

Lon,

The light is gorgeous and I don't think I'd change a thing about this image. As for the size of the perch, the bird decided to land on it so the size of it is just fine for me.

Registered on June 25, 2007, 491 Posts, 12566 Comments

Comment posted by Howard Cheek on May 17, 2010 at 9:49 AM

I like the light here Lon, great details/colors as well.
The bird stands out well against the dark BG too

Registered on July 24, 2008, 1201 Posts, 10758 Comments