Northern Flicker

Gallery: AvianPosted December 2, 2010209 views12 comments

Last year about this time I had bought a portable blind and had set it up on the back porch to try to get some close-ups of birds coming to the feeders and this Flicker landed on our rail. You may be able to see the blind in it's eye. I've always loved the markings on these birds and thought this showcased the dots on the breast area.

Nikon D300 w/sigma 50-500 @ 500mm
f/6.3
1/320
iso 320
Tripod mounted

Cropped square/ approx. 80% FF

As always your comments and critique are welcomed and appreciated.

Comments

12 comments

Comment posted by Ron Bielefeld on December 2, 2010 at 5:56 PM

Wow, you can't get more detail that this. I really nice close-up comp Doug. I am not sure about the feather texture on flickers, so I am not sure if this is a bit oversharpened or not. The feathers seem a bit coarse, but I may be completely wrong, so take this comment for what it is worth based on how much you sharpened the bird. Overall a really cool look at a really cool bird. Well done.

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

Comment posted by Dan Moore on December 2, 2010 at 6:17 PM

Wonderfull shot Doug! I agree that these have nice markings that you have captured very well.

Dan

Registered on February 11, 2010, 143 Posts, 1248 Comments

Comment posted by Doug Gilham on December 2, 2010 at 6:41 PM

Thanks for the comments guys.

Ron, I had a hard time with the sharpening on this shot and may have gone a tad too far. I probably should have tried selective areas of the bird as there are many textures to these guys as you can see. Thank you for your honest critique, I appreciate it.

Registered on September 20, 2009, 77 Posts, 489 Comments

Comment posted by Eric Diller on December 2, 2010 at 7:47 PM

Nice portrait on the Flicker. Nice details as well....looks great on my screen!

Registered on October 2, 2009, 69 Posts, 434 Comments

Comment posted by Luke Ormand on December 2, 2010 at 8:19 PM

Awesome to get so close to this species! Super Sharp on those beautiful feathers.

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

Comment posted by Wayne Willison on December 3, 2010 at 8:27 AM

Beautiful bird. Worth sitting in a blind for sure. Exceptional techs here, although I agree maybe some slective sharpening where you're so close and have so much detail to work with.

Registered on April 10, 2009, 292 Posts, 3967 Comments

Comment posted by Sally King on December 3, 2010 at 10:18 AM

He looks proud. Amazing detail. Lovely colors and nice smooth background. I can't make out the blind on my screen. Seems like it worked well.

Registered on December 2, 2008, 416 Posts, 4450 Comments

Comment posted by Monica Siri on December 3, 2010 at 3:50 PM

Doug,
well composed and neat portrait of this beautiful bird.

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

Comment posted by Mia McPherson on December 3, 2010 at 5:05 PM

How wonderful that this flicker approached you so closely Doug. Beautiful pose and great, natural colors. I can see the blind, how cool! I simply love the feather patterns flickers have and this shows those very well.

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

Comment posted by Ron Dudley on December 3, 2010 at 8:21 PM

Incredible detail Doug. I expect this flicker's head to poke right out of the screen at me. This so reminds me of my only good shots of a flicker. A similar thing happened - the bird just flew up and landed within a few feet of me and I wasn't even hidden or in a blind. It's never happened since. You got more even light and a better profile than I did - mine was almost head on. Very nice!

Registered on March 30, 2007, 437 Posts, 10915 Comments

Comment posted by Derrick Lipinski on December 3, 2010 at 8:33 PM

Awesome portrait, Doug; really wonderful detail. From my experience it's not very easy getting close to a flicker. Nicely captured.

Registered on October 5, 2007, 58 Posts, 2039 Comments

Comment posted by Gary Marquart on December 5, 2010 at 7:09 PM

Nice portrait Doug!

Registered on October 24, 2009, 126 Posts, 799 Comments