Juicy Fruit

Gallery: AvianPosted October 11, 2011299 views18 comments

Scissor-tailed flycatcher. Sugar Land, TX October 7, 2011

D3 ISO 400. 300/2.8 with 2x tc f5.6 1/800s. From car window.

I had been shooting this beautiful bird and was disappointed when he suddenly flew away, but he immediately reappeared in the view finder with this caterpillar and consumed it.

I'm always perplexed at how to crop long-tailed birds. This seemed to work best. Some detail was lost in compression, mostly at the top of the head.

Comments

18 comments

Comment posted by Dennis Plank on October 11, 2011 at 10:35 PM

Wonderful, Angela. The composition fits the long tail perfectly, and the caterpillar is a perfect touch.

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

Comment posted by Richard Ditch on October 11, 2011 at 10:46 PM

A powerful composition! I love the extended line of the perch through the tail.

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

Comment posted by Verdon on October 11, 2011 at 10:46 PM

Angela three thumbs up!!!!!!!!

Registered on June 10, 2011, 147 Posts, 1444 Comments

Comment posted by Ray Whitt on October 11, 2011 at 11:07 PM

Outstanding image Angela, all the way down to the green drop from the caterpillar. Perfect!

Ray

Registered on May 27, 2011, 92 Posts, 2619 Comments

Comment posted by Hans Overduin on October 12, 2011 at 2:12 AM

Very good work here Angela, like the pose and choice of frame. Never knew you had these kind of birds over there ! Grtz, Hans

Registered on August 31, 2011, 491 Posts, 3807 Comments

Comment posted by Howard Cheek on October 12, 2011 at 8:22 AM

Wonderful image of this flycatcher, I think the comp works just fine here.
The small cat adds nicely to this shot, love your catchy title too

Well done Angela

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

Comment posted by Robbie Knight on October 12, 2011 at 1:12 PM

Great capture thanks for sharing...... The implied action and CP are awesome.
Robbie

Registered on April 10, 2010, 30 Posts, 135 Comments

Comment posted by Fabio Giarrizzo on October 12, 2011 at 2:02 PM

Wonderful bird, great pose and an awesome BG on this one- My best congrats, Fabio

Registered on December 3, 2010, 90 Posts, 1614 Comments

Comment posted by Charles Gangas on October 12, 2011 at 3:50 PM

Great capture and very effective composition Angela, really nice work.

Registered on August 12, 2009, 544 Posts, 2414 Comments

Comment posted by Luke Ormand on October 12, 2011 at 8:16 PM

what a capture with perfect composition and nice action

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

Comment posted by Mark Deibert on October 13, 2011 at 7:14 AM

Amazing shot! And the dripping caterpillar...wow! Great details where they need to be, the BG virtually gone.

Registered on September 30, 2011, 48 Posts, 125 Comments

Comment posted by Ashley Vincent on October 13, 2011 at 7:55 PM

What a wonderful capture of this delightful bird Angela! The level of detail looks great to me in the larger version and you DOF was perfect. The caterpillar adds even more interest of course, all the more for the droplet of it's innards, as ghoulish as that might sound ;^)

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

Comment posted by SandyRichardsBrown on October 14, 2011 at 12:25 AM

Delightful pose with that caterpillar! Have never seen one of these, so much appreciated..
Sharp head, nice BG and cool perch. Not sure, but I think a bit more at the top would improve this nice image even more. You're right that it's very tough to comp a bird with a very long tail..
Sandy

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

Comment posted by Neal Cooper on October 14, 2011 at 11:06 AM

Fantastic image Angela. Pin sharp and perfect exposure. I also
like the drops of work goo

. Well done.

Registered on June 3, 2009, 144 Posts, 306 Comments

Comment posted by KC Choo on October 14, 2011 at 11:24 AM

A terrific presentation - well done! And, with food, too!

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

Comment posted by Bill Leggett on October 14, 2011 at 1:58 PM

Have never seen any of theis species. Nicely done, Angela.

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

Comment posted by S Govindarajan on October 15, 2011 at 12:05 AM

Very well captured and composed, Angela. The droplet(?) adds a lot to this already fine image. Super background.

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

Comment posted by May Haga on October 16, 2011 at 12:49 PM

Another great flycatcher shot Angela. Love the composition.
May

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