American Oystercatcher

Gallery: AvianPosted September 2, 201181 views13 comments

Texas City Dike, Texas City, TX August, 2011

D3 ISO 200. 300/2.8 with 2x tc. f5.6 1/800s. From Car Window.

Comments

13 comments

Comment posted by Nate Chappell on September 2, 2011 at 11:48 PM

Very nice Angela, I like the high stepping foot and the feathers in the beak, the eye of this species often has a strange look to it as seen here. Sweet shot.

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

Comment posted by Kurt Bowman on September 3, 2011 at 12:46 AM

Great capture here Angela! Love the lifted leg and that eye...wow, it looks cool! Nice techs all around, no nits from me.

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

Comment posted by keith mitchell on September 3, 2011 at 2:53 AM

Angela this is really stepping out you have got nice exposure with plenty of sharp detail and the feather in the bill is a real bonus.very nice indeed.

Keith.

Registered on July 12, 2008, 127 Posts, 1735 Comments

Comment posted by Howard Cheek on September 3, 2011 at 7:50 AM

Tack sharp, great mid-stride pose and side POV Angela.
Excellent color, contrast, and exposure too..
Like those feathers on the beak as well, they add some good interest

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

Comment posted by Ron Bielefeld on September 3, 2011 at 11:48 AM

Super sharp and wonderful detail in the larger version Angela. A real pleasure to view. Great pose, perch, and BG. Love the eye. As Nate said they usually have a dark spot other than the pupil somewhere in the iris. Well done.

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

Comment posted by SandyRichardsBrown on September 3, 2011 at 12:25 PM

A beauty! not the slightest nit from me - nice pose, excellent detail, great colours and the added interest of the raised foot and feathers in the beak.

Sandy

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

Comment posted by David Haynes on September 3, 2011 at 12:48 PM

Beautiful Angela. I love the feathers in the beak and the lifted leg. Great detail in the larger image. You did well with the exposure and the straight overhead lighting. You really have that converter dialed in. I'm stunned at how sharp you get your images while using that 2X converter. Cheers to you Angela.

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

Comment posted by Alan Murphy on September 3, 2011 at 2:36 PM

Very nice Angela. Love the raised foot and the head angle.

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

Comment posted by Angela McCain on September 3, 2011 at 2:46 PM

Thank you all. The eye of the oystercatcher is very unusual and as Nate noted, often not very photogenic. I find the orange eye ring is often irregular and ruins the image. The iris flecks of black pigment are not well understood, but are being studied as a way of sexing the birds, which are otherwise essentially identical. Apparently females usually have full flecks and males either smaller or no flecks. (Guzzetti. J Field Ornithology 3Jun2008)

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

Comment posted by Sally King on September 3, 2011 at 7:21 PM

Definitely an image that keeps the attention. I love the colors, raised foot, and especially the feathers caught in the bill. Really nice details in the black feathers too.

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

Comment posted by Catherine Reilly on September 4, 2011 at 1:36 AM

Magnificent detail captured with your set-up, Angela. From a car window?! You're killin' me…

Registered on August 16, 2006, 603 Posts, 9192 Comments

Comment posted by KC Choo on September 4, 2011 at 2:20 AM

Very nice despite what appears to be harsh light.

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

Comment posted by May Haga on September 4, 2011 at 7:17 PM

Great capture Angela. Nice low angle, nice perch and a raised foot to add interest.

May

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