California Quail (REPOST)

Gallery: AvianPosted April 4, 201185 views13 comments

I've seen them in the Interior of BC as well as in the Southern California Desert, but I was very surprised to find about 30 of them in the Eastern Sierras at about 8,000 feet, in the snow, a couple of weekends ago! As most of you know, the Eastern Sierras and the West Coast of North America were blasted with early Spring storms recently.

This marks my first shot of a female CAQU.

1D MkIV, 300mm f2.8 + 2.0X, ISO500, 1/3200 @ f8, tripod, morning light. Laptop processed - is it bright enough?

Thanks for looking; C & C please.

Comments

13 comments

Comment posted by Rick Cloran on April 4, 2011 at 3:53 PM

KC, wonderful shot. I love the way the foot is breaking through the snow on the edge. Love to see a larger version for the detail. Looks to be about half a stop below optimal so the whites are showing a little grayish.

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

Comment posted by Dennis Plank on April 4, 2011 at 6:14 PM

Excellent, Kwan. I love the foot coming through the snow.

Registered on January 28, 2008, 1767 Posts, 23192 Comments

Comment posted by Ron Dudley on April 4, 2011 at 6:33 PM

A neat moment you caught here Kwan. It looks like she's not too sure how to negotiate the snow.

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

Comment posted by Kurt Bowman on April 4, 2011 at 8:52 PM

I like how she stands out against the snow Kwan. I also like how her foot is busting through the snow.

Registered on June 19, 2008, 1005 Posts, 8028 Comments

Comment posted by Richard Teller on April 4, 2011 at 9:55 PM

The bird is nice and sharp and really stand out against the snow. I agree that the snow is just a little gray.

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

Comment posted by Nate Chappell on April 4, 2011 at 10:05 PM

Cool to get this crashing through the snow Kwan, on my monitor both the bird and snow look too dark.

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

Comment posted by KC Choo on April 4, 2011 at 10:44 PM

Thanks for the feedback - my MBP is a couple of generations older now and I have had brightness problems. I pulled it back 1/2 a stop in Bridge, so I have now gone back to "0.00".

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

Comment posted by Rick Cloran on April 4, 2011 at 11:09 PM

Yes, much nicer on the repost. She is shining there.

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

Comment posted by SandyRichardsBrown on April 4, 2011 at 11:11 PM

Re-post brightness is much better!
Nice pose, great flying snow, and perfect whites. the shadow of the plume is a nice bonus.
Sandy

Registered on November 24, 2003, 3937 Posts, 12909 Comments

Comment posted by Rob Drummond on April 5, 2011 at 3:16 AM

Repost is great KC - love the foot breaking through the snow

cheers
Rob

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

Comment posted by Brian Gatlin on April 5, 2011 at 9:01 AM

repost looks great, KC. a quail in the snow is definitely an odd sight for me!

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

Comment posted by Cheryl Molennor on April 5, 2011 at 12:05 PM

Very cool and prefer the repost as well

Registered on June 30, 2009, 300 Posts, 5051 Comments

Comment posted by Matt Shellenberg on April 5, 2011 at 8:28 PM

Great to see her breaking through the snow, KC. Nice detail and nicely composed. The exposure looks really good on the repost.

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