Northern Pintail (Male) with re-post.

Gallery: AvianPosted March 28, 2011533 views8 comments

Another waterfowl photographed in February, 2010 at a lake in the Phoenix Zoo. This image was taken with a Nikon D300 and Nikkor 80-400mm f/4.5-5.6D ED VR AF. Camera settings were 1/250s f/5.3 iso 400 at 270.0mm in aperture priority mode. The image was cropped and is approximately 75% of the original.

It appears to be molting at the top of its head, but it just might be wet.

Comments and critiques welcome.

Comments

8 comments

Comment posted by Sharon Hallowell on March 28, 2011 at 7:40 PM

Nice view showing off this duck's beautiful plumage. The image needs some ccw rotation...if you use a vertical line and line up the reflections you can see this. Also, would like a bit more space for the duck to theoretically swim into...if you have this before cropping, I would consider adding it back. Wonderful water, good exposure, and a nice catchlight in the eye! Sharon

Registered on November 1, 2003, 392 Posts, 4810 Comments

Comment posted by Matt Shellenberg on March 28, 2011 at 8:51 PM

Nice look at this pintail, Jay. Very good job with the exposure. It does need a bit of Counter Clockwise rotation to level the water. Maybe a tad bit tight in the frame.

Registered on February 6, 2008, 168 Posts, 3118 Comments

Comment posted by Jay Levin on March 28, 2011 at 8:55 PM

Thanks, Sharon and Matt. Hopefully this is better.

Registered on April 24, 2009, 21 Posts, 184 Comments

Comment posted by Matt Shellenberg on March 28, 2011 at 9:11 PM

The repost is a huge improvement, Jay. Always nice for the bird to have a bit of room to look into. Pintails are tough because you always have to leave room for that long tail. Very nice job.

Registered on February 6, 2008, 168 Posts, 3118 Comments

Comment posted by Brian Gatlin on March 28, 2011 at 10:13 PM

really nice, Jay. love the water here and the repost looks really good.

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

Comment posted by Nate Chappell on March 29, 2011 at 9:45 PM

The repost looks much better Jay. Generally I'd like a lower angle with waterfowl shots but the pretty water helps make this work.

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

Comment posted by Angela McCain on March 30, 2011 at 8:49 AM

I like the work you have done. There is great detail in the feathers here. I would have preferred a lower angle, but excellent as is.

Registered on April 19, 2009, 367 Posts, 3589 Comments

Comment posted by Dan Harbour on March 30, 2011 at 12:41 PM

Beautiful color, exquisite detail, great reflection. The repost is an improvement.

Registered on January 4, 2008, 113 Posts, 2416 Comments