Black Skimmer

Gallery: AvianPosted March 21, 2011106 views12 comments

Going through old files and I "rescued" this one. It's nearly full frame but I had to add canvas to make the photo work - I'll leave it up to you guys to figure out where.

Nikon D300s 300 f4 + 1.7X TC HH
f/8
1/3200s
ISO 800 (overkill)
-.67 EC

Levels adjustment on face, Smart Sharpen and USM, noise reduction on background, canvas add and crop for composition all in CS5 on 27" iMac

- Luke

Comments

12 comments

Comment posted by Ron Dudley on March 21, 2011 at 9:43 PM

Luke, great eye contact on this one and I think your added canvas came out well so I won't try to figure out where it is. To my eye I think there could be more detail in some of the whites and the skimmer could be a bit sharper.

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

Comment posted by Harry Harris on March 21, 2011 at 10:20 PM

Luke, Love this. Skimmers are my favorite bird. I can't wait till they come back here in Orange County, Ca. I will use this one as a standard to try and achieve.

Registered on August 2, 2010, 169 Posts, 741 Comments

Comment posted by Brian Gatlin on March 21, 2011 at 11:00 PM

sweet flight shot with nice light on the bill and eye, Luke. I agree with Ron that it's not quite tack sharp.

I'll just add that on my recent trip to FL, I did really well bird-wise, but this was one species that I missed that I really hoped to see, let alone photograph.

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

Comment posted by Ashley Vincent on March 21, 2011 at 11:59 PM

Nice angle and eye contact Luke, and no idea where you added canvas, so you obviously did a great job ;^)

Kind regards,

Ashley

Registered on March 1, 2011, 154 Posts, 2083 Comments

Comment posted by David Haynes on March 22, 2011 at 12:23 AM

Luke,
This makes me yearn for June when the skimmers come back to Orange County, Ca and do their thing. Like Harry, this is one of my top 5 favorite birds. The whites look very good, and even though the wings are in a fairly static position I get a sense of motion in this image particularly with the blurred foreground at the bottom. You have great catchlight in the eye Luke. You have my mouth watering for their arrival in two to three months. Can't wait.

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

Comment posted by Ron Bielefeld on March 22, 2011 at 6:59 AM

I can't find the added canvas Luke, so good job on that. I like the comp, BG, and bird's position. I agree with others about the detail and sharpness. I believe the high ISO played a part in that. A nice image overall.

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

Comment posted by richard remington on March 22, 2011 at 7:51 AM

Luke,

I like the way you avoid overcrowding your pictures. You always have great sharpness and detail without jamming the subject into the shot. I love the bg and would never know you added canvas.

Rick

Registered on March 12, 2010, 105 Posts, 368 Comments

Comment posted by Mauro Pasquero on March 22, 2011 at 10:42 AM

Great pose and good eye contact, Luke. Well done.
Mauro

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

Comment posted by Rick Cloran on March 22, 2011 at 10:49 AM

Black Skimmer in flight with the eye visible Sweet

Registered on April 6, 2004, 119 Posts, 1989 Comments

Comment posted by Sally King on March 22, 2011 at 12:47 PM

I love the look in his eye and that wonderful bill. Looks plenty sharp to me and I can't tell where you added canvas.

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

Comment posted by Nate Chappell on March 22, 2011 at 4:30 PM

Really nice light here Luke. Maybe just a touch soft in the face which I wonder whether might be a dof issue rather than an iso issue. You were almost wide open here and it sounds like you were quite close to the bird. Nice image.

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

Comment posted by Doug Backlund on March 23, 2011 at 8:05 AM

I got to see and photograph my first Black Skimmer this winter in Texas. Amazing birds, I have no idea where you added canvas. Nice work on the exposure too!

Registered on September 29, 2005, 252 Posts, 3380 Comments