Cassin's Kingbird

Gallery: AvianPosted July 1, 201197 views10 comments

It's been a busy spring for me, with lots of great activity but very little time for photography or participating here, and the few times that I have gotten out, I've had no luck at all. So although this image has some flaws, I was happy to get something to post this morning. This is a Cassin's Kingbird, and it's one of my target species that I hope to do well with this summer. It is on a natural perch but was baited with water and fruit.

Processing is minimal, and I only used about 1/3 my usual amount of sharpening.

I appreciate your comments and critiques.

Canon 7D, 500mm + 1.4x TC, tripod

f/7.1, 1/800, ISO 400

Crop to 49% (8.9 of 18MP).

Comments

10 comments

Comment posted by Kurt Bowman on July 2, 2011 at 12:50 AM

Very nice detail, color and pose Brian. Also love the color tone of the BG...it compliments the Kingbird well.

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

Comment posted by Howard Cheek on July 2, 2011 at 8:43 AM

Nice & sharp, well composed Brian. I especially like the complimentary colors of the BG, looks very nice!
Only obvious nit that I can see is the perch extending up in front. Is that what you mean?
Have a great 4th!

Registered on July 24, 2008, 1201 Posts, 10758 Comments

Comment posted by Sharon Hallowell on July 2, 2011 at 9:07 AM

I like the bg and the nice detail in the head. Perfect head turn. It's a little close at the tail end and I guess you need more than 7.1 to get that tail sharp, too. Sharon

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

Comment posted by Steve Balke on July 2, 2011 at 11:32 AM

Lovely colors here, Brian. That perch doesn't bother me nor does the slightly OOF tail. However, for some reason I keep thinking that this bird is too far on the lhs. Maybe it's because it seems to be looking to its left....but its head is turned right. I dunno. Anyway, you might try a comp where the bird is moved to the rhs of the frame.

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

Comment posted by Richard Ditch on July 2, 2011 at 12:23 PM

Nice to see you posting again. I'd be happy with a shot this good of this species.

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

Comment posted by Gary Gulash on July 2, 2011 at 2:22 PM

Hi Brian, nice to see you back. Image quality is excellent, hardly suffers from the crop. The perch in front of the bird isn't ideal, but the head has amazing detail. Overall color is very nice.

Registered on January 28, 2005, 879 Posts, 12098 Comments

Comment posted by Alan Murphy on July 2, 2011 at 2:38 PM

Wish he had landed on the top of the perch. Sweet light pose and detail. A bit big in the frame for me.

Registered on December 3, 2003, 192 Posts, 739 Comments

Comment posted by Dennis Plank on July 3, 2011 at 2:14 PM

Gorgeous light, Brian. If you have room all around, I might loosen up the crop a bit. I really like the palette in this image.

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

Comment posted by May Haga on July 3, 2011 at 7:23 PM

Excellent image Brian. Nice little head turn and nice to see a view of the breast.
May

Registered on February 22, 2007, 714 Posts, 8470 Comments

Comment posted by Brian Gatlin on July 3, 2011 at 8:13 PM

thanks for the comments, all. I totally agree about the need for more room on the bottom (and perhaps all around), unfortunately this is full frame vertically. I snapped a few quick shots in landscape format since that was how I was set up, then as I rotated the camera to portrait, I got one shot (not a good pose) and he flew. I do have plenty more room on the sides and could perhaps add a bit of canvas on the bottom.

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