Splendid Fairy-wren

Gallery: AvianPosted August 2, 2010372 views22 comments

These are one of the highlights of the drab mulga woodlands of inland Australia. The brilliance of the blue and the reflections in the sunlight take your breath away. The males carry petals as part of their courtship routine. They will often carry them for ages, even when no active courting appears to be happening.

1D2n 500/f4 1.4X
ISO 400 f8 1/4000 exp comp -2/3
I've desaturated the blues a little

cheers
Rob

Comments

22 comments

Comment posted by Simon Bennett on August 2, 2010 at 3:31 AM

Absolute stunner Rob, and well done getting the petal. Nice clean background too.

Registered on February 4, 2007, 350 Posts, 4614 Comments

Comment posted by Darren McKenna on August 2, 2010 at 5:30 AM

You guys have some absolutely awesome birds in Australia, this is gorgeous.

Registered on October 28, 2008, 31 Posts, 214 Comments

Comment posted by Joe Vincent on August 2, 2010 at 6:02 AM

Just lovely Rob!!

Registered on August 16, 2005, 69 Posts, 792 Comments

Comment posted by Peter Conway on August 2, 2010 at 8:30 AM

Sweet Rob. Wonderful color against the dull BG tones. I like your comp and the perch, well I like it all.

Peter

Registered on June 25, 2007, 347 Posts, 3913 Comments

Comment posted by Joel DeYoung on August 2, 2010 at 8:56 AM

Wow what a stunning bird! I was just reading about these birds in Wildbird magazine. Nice perch, excellent colors and details. Well done.

Registered on July 12, 2009, 92 Posts, 1074 Comments

Comment posted by Luke Ormand on August 2, 2010 at 9:03 AM

This photo has a lot of cool elements going on from the wet plumage to the streaks of rain and the food in the bill. Well done.

Registered on February 4, 2009, 1093 Posts, 7035 Comments

Comment posted by KC Choo on August 2, 2010 at 10:57 AM

Absolutely splendid, Rob!

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

Comment posted by Dennis Plank on August 2, 2010 at 11:16 AM

A real little beauty, Rob. A very nice pose and bg.

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

Comment posted by jamie pringle on August 2, 2010 at 11:31 AM

Great behavior shot with stunning color. Thanks for including the larger version to enjoy the detail you captured

Registered on August 10, 2005, 323 Posts, 1216 Comments

Comment posted by Keith A Anderson on August 2, 2010 at 11:37 AM

This is indeed a splendid, Splendid Fairy-wren. Lovely comp and pose with a an interesting and complementary bg. Someday I hope to see one of these little guys in person.

Registered on February 13, 2006, 166 Posts, 1818 Comments

Comment posted by David Hemmings on August 2, 2010 at 3:01 PM

What a stunning bird, great image Rob

Registered on May 26, 2006, 178 Posts, 1680 Comments

Comment posted by denise ippolito on August 2, 2010 at 3:46 PM

Beautiful pose, sharpness and comp.

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

Comment posted by Ken Archer on August 2, 2010 at 4:34 PM

Cool Bird Rob!!! Sweet Portrait

Ken Archer

Registered on October 28, 2004, 222 Posts, 6683 Comments

Comment posted by Ron Bielefeld on August 2, 2010 at 5:39 PM

Wow, what colors Rob. Just a sweet shot. Is it raining? Is the bird's plumage wet?

Registered on December 6, 2008, 360 Posts, 7132 Comments

Comment posted by Rob Drummond on August 2, 2010 at 6:10 PM

Luke and Ron asked if the bird's plumage was wet. The answer is no - it's just the fine detail that is magnified by the reflective qualities of the feathers. It almost looks over sharpened but I've used my normal procedure but reduced it a little to compensate. I've seen shots of tanagers with a similar 'wet' appearance.

cheers
Rob

Registered on November 8, 2003, 617 Posts, 8267 Comments

Comment posted by Buck Ward on August 2, 2010 at 9:30 PM

Wow! What a knock-out! and beautifully photographed.

Registered on December 8, 2003, 96 Posts, 1917 Comments

Comment posted by Ronnie Gaubert on August 2, 2010 at 10:16 PM

Superb shot Rob. That's one colorful bird. Nice perch and good pose he gave you.
Thanks for posting,
Ronnie G.

Registered on November 1, 2003, 810 Posts, 3495 Comments

Comment posted by Brian Gatlin on August 3, 2010 at 10:21 AM

what a bird, Rob. splendid is the right word! lovely in every respect, great DOF, and nice job with the blues, which I imagine might be a little difficult to handle. and a petal in the bill? now that tops things off! a real treat to see this.

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

Comment posted by Mia McPherson on August 3, 2010 at 12:43 PM

Rob,

I can see why this bird would brighten up the mulga woodlands, the colors are spectacular. Love the pose, the light and the petal in the bill.

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

Comment posted by Bob McQuade on August 3, 2010 at 5:41 PM

What an incredible bird, very sharp image, nice BG, but I would certainly think about cloning out the OOF stuff on the right

Registered on October 8, 2009, 214 Posts, 432 Comments

Comment posted by Jagdeep Rajput on August 4, 2010 at 7:57 AM

The blue is so spectacular and so is the bird !
Jagdeep Rajput

Registered on April 29, 2008, 686 Posts, 2857 Comments

Comment posted by Chris Ross on August 4, 2010 at 8:45 AM

Great shot Rob, I only wish I got this close to a male, they seem to be a bit shyer than the females. They really do seem to glow from within.

Registered on November 1, 2003, 403 Posts, 2729 Comments