Semipalmated Plover

Gallery: AvianPosted March 21, 2011116 views22 comments

Taken at Tigertail Beach, Marco Island, FL. My thanks go to folks like Mia McPherson and Rob Drummond for their consistent examples of great low angles--their work inspired me to get down in the mud for my shorebird shots on this trip. It's amazing what a difference it makes to lie down even compared to sitting.

I did a very small clone job to remove a small piece of grass crossing the lead foot. Otherwise, this is pretty much straight out of the camera except for sharpening.

Your comments and critiques are appreciated. Please view the larger version if possible.

Canon 7D, 500mm + 1.4x TC, lying down with skimmer ground pod.

f/8, 1/640, ISO 500

Crop to 64% (11.6 of 18MP)

Comments

22 comments

Comment posted by Harry Harris on March 21, 2011 at 10:47 PM

Brian, Mia and Rob are great teachers and by this image, I see you are a good student. The low angle really makes this shot. Great job.

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

Comment posted by Luke Ormand on March 21, 2011 at 10:49 PM

Sweet action with the worm and exposure is spot on. . . and the detail is as good as it gets The foreground seems a bit noisy though even with the relatively low ISO.

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

Comment posted by Ashley Vincent on March 21, 2011 at 11:56 PM

Nice warm image of this little Plover and most certainly the low angle of view you acquired makes the shot, very well done Brian :^)

Kind regards,

Ashley

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

Comment posted by David Haynes on March 22, 2011 at 12:14 AM

Brian,
What a stellar view and angle you got of this guy. Looks like you were laying down all the way on the ground to get that really blurred out foreground. The light is exceptional, and the feather detail is really, really sharp particularly in the larger version Brian. The topper is the fact that he's getting a meal out of the soil. Brian, this really is a great image and the low angle is what really impacts ths shot.

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

Comment posted by Simon Bennett on March 22, 2011 at 2:10 AM

Low angle, detail, light, exposure, natural history - all first rate.

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

Comment posted by Rob Drummond on March 22, 2011 at 5:57 AM

Way to go Brian; the mud is apparently quite therapeutic. Wonderful detail and light also.

cheers
Rob

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

Comment posted by Christopher Dodds on March 22, 2011 at 6:52 AM

Gorgeous image with terrific low angle and lovely light.

Registered on October 14, 2010, 9 Posts, 46 Comments

Comment posted by Ron Bielefeld on March 22, 2011 at 6:53 AM

Sweet shot Brian. The low angle does it all here as does the worm pulling action. Great exposure and detail. Love it all. Very well done.

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

Comment posted by Ron Dudley on March 22, 2011 at 7:54 AM

Just a wonderful image all 'round Brian. Low angle, great light, interesting behavior and excellent detail/sharpness. The horizon line gives a sense of place. Really nice!

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

Comment posted by Steve Balke on March 22, 2011 at 10:27 AM

Looks great to me as posted, Brian. You sure caught the action! Beautiful exposure and detail. That low angle sure works!

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

Comment posted by Richard Teller on March 22, 2011 at 10:41 AM

Great detail. and I really like the way the foreground and background colors compliment the bird.

Registered on August 23, 2010, 1162 Posts, 6692 Comments

Comment posted by Mauro Pasquero on March 22, 2011 at 10:46 AM

Awesome shot, Brian. Amazing angle, colors and detail.

Mauro

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

Comment posted by Rick Cloran on March 22, 2011 at 10:55 AM

Nice angle showing the tension applied to the blood worm as it is extracted. Well done

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

Comment posted by Richard Ditch on March 22, 2011 at 12:09 PM

Excellent. Terrific detail; nice light; great viewpoint.

Registered on November 1, 2003, 1031 Posts, 12705 Comments

Comment posted by Sally King on March 22, 2011 at 12:42 PM

Okay now instead of going to Texas next year I want to go to Florida. Love the light. The low perspective is incredible. Nice feather details even in the white. I love how he's tugging on that worm. Low perspective great, action even better.

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

Comment posted by Jim Hackley on March 22, 2011 at 3:06 PM

That low perspective really makes the shot and what a difference, wonderful feather detail and the worm is icing on the cake (so to speak). Way to go, well done.

Registered on September 17, 2009, 302 Posts, 5535 Comments

Comment posted by Bill Leggett on March 22, 2011 at 4:11 PM

Yeah, that low angle really sets this one of, Brian.

Registered on July 21, 2004, 706 Posts, 3233 Comments

Comment posted by Wayne Willison on March 22, 2011 at 4:12 PM

Good techs and I really like the pov. Love that eye.

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

Comment posted by Nate Chappell on March 22, 2011 at 4:27 PM

Beautiful low angle and lighting here Brian. The 2 toned background doesn't do much for me because of the large contrast in it but that's minor and personal taste. Sweet shot

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

Comment posted by S Govindarajan on March 22, 2011 at 5:56 PM

Beautiful image, Brian. Like everything about this. Your hardwork really paid off here. The feeding behavior makes this special. They pass through here during migration, but the photographic opportunities are nothing like this (likely I haven't tried it).

Registered on April 19, 2008, 115 Posts, 1921 Comments

Comment posted by Doug Gilham on March 22, 2011 at 6:14 PM

The low angle really makes this shot Brian, and you have great detail and light to boot. Great capture!!!

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

Comment posted by John Blumenkamp on March 22, 2011 at 9:38 PM

Fantastic low angle and quality of light Brian... congrats.

Registered on February 26, 2011, 58 Posts, 313 Comments