Little blue Herron

Gallery: AvianPosted September 5, 2010149 views10 comments

Got this capture last weekend from Bolsa Chica Wetlands in Huntington Beach, Ca of a immature little blue herron. He's the talk of the town right now as we rarely see them here. They frequent the San Diego area much more often. He's eating nothing but bugs. Nobdy has seen him fishing. Very intersting. Seems very healthy. Looking forward to getting the beautiful marbling effect if he stays here for a few more months.
I got this with my new 600mm lense. No hand holding any more. Check out the larger size for more details. Thanks as always for commenting and especially critiqueing.

Nikon D300s
600mm
ISO 800
Manual mode
Spot metered off him when he was closer
f/9
SS 800
Auto White balance
no flash
tripod
20% crop, noise reduction, minor sharpening, contrast, levels, small rotation.

Comments

10 comments

Comment posted by Stephen Cunliffe on September 5, 2010 at 4:22 PM

I like very much the color of the grasses, the black background and the translucence of the wings. I might just crop another 10% from the top left corner

Registered on May 25, 2009, 62 Posts, 202 Comments

Comment posted by David Haynes on September 5, 2010 at 7:36 PM

Rich, Thanks for the congrats. Like you I am already vacilating on my decision to buy the 600 instead of the 500. The 500 I believe would be much more versitile than the 600. I can not hand hold this for more than 5-10 seconds before starting to shake so bad there is no way of capturing anything with it. I am not used to being tied to a tripod and it is somewhat frustrasting. I will look at it as a tool that can very useful for some situations but my 200-400 will easily remain my favorite lense becasue it is extremely versatile and easily hand holdable all day long. By the way Rich, yes to Wimberly11!!
Stephen, I agree with this needing a little off the top and left side. I may repost with your suggestion. Thank you!! I missed it.

Registered on February 20, 2010, 110 Posts, 1511 Comments

Comment posted by David Haynes on September 5, 2010 at 7:40 PM

Stephen,
Here is the repost with your suggestion. Thanks.

Registered on February 20, 2010, 110 Posts, 1511 Comments

Comment posted by Steve Balke on September 5, 2010 at 10:51 PM

Beautiful shot David. The detail in the whites and the sharpness are really impressive! That lens really works! I keep looking at both the 500 mm and 600 mm but I know if I take the plunge and buy one I'll end up staying in one place too much. Walking with my 400 mm is such great exercise!
Beautiful image!! I like both versions with a slight bias towards the repost.

Registered on June 18, 2009, 229 Posts, 2915 Comments

Comment posted by Nate Chappell on September 6, 2010 at 12:43 AM

Congrats on the new lens David, I much prefer the composition in the repost. Interesting lighting that shows nicely on the face and good sharpness.

Registered on February 1, 2006, 1158 Posts, 19528 Comments

Comment posted by KC Choo on September 6, 2010 at 4:57 AM

For some reason, dark BG's don't work too well for bird photography, but this one certainly does. The repost is preferred.

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

Comment posted by Mauro Pasquero on September 6, 2010 at 5:18 AM

Beautiful pose and wonderful light!
Mauro

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

Comment posted by Brian Gatlin on September 6, 2010 at 8:37 AM

sweet light, great pose, and excellent re-comp. only nit for me is that I wish the bill stood out just a little better against the dark bg. congrats on the new lens--enjoy!!

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

Comment posted by Monica Siri on September 6, 2010 at 9:18 AM

David,
I prefer the repost too. Beautiful flight pose and detail. Congrats on the new lens. I look forward to seeing more.

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

Comment posted by Howard Cheek on September 9, 2010 at 6:48 AM

Love the light, gives it a real 3D look & feel David.
Like the bottom grasses and their color adds well to your frame.
Black BG works well too, this heron stands out nicely.
Like both posts, both work equally well IMHO

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