Ring-necked Pheasant

Gallery: AvianPosted November 7, 2011801 views13 comments

I'm always on the lookout for these birds but I've found it to be very difficult to catch them out in the open. And then there's that long tail... I liked this male with the red pickleweed in the setting but I'm wondering if all the color is distracting from the subject. I'm also not sure what you may think of the OOF foreground grasses at lower right.

7D, 1/1250, f/7.1, ISO 500, 500 f/4, 1.4 tc, shot from pickup window on 10/28/10, exposure adjustment in ACR, cropped to 63% of original image, sharpened bird, no additional processing or adjustments, natural light, not set up, called in or baited, wild bird

Larger version provided

Comments/critique appreciated

Comments

13 comments

Comment posted by Alan Murphy on November 7, 2011 at 6:28 PM

love the grasses in this image. A fantastic setting for this beautiful bird. Well done.

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

Comment posted by Craig Strand on November 7, 2011 at 6:58 PM

It all looks great to me Ron, I love the complimentary bg colors, the pheasant is extremely well taken. I have no problem showing the additional foreground habitat, grasses. A greatshot, one I would have loved to have taken.

Registered on March 30, 2008, 416 Posts, 2885 Comments

Comment posted by Sharon Hallowell on November 7, 2011 at 7:50 PM

I think your fg grasses help balance the comp, and I love the other grasses...I could look at them all day! You did real well to catch this pheasant in the open! Sharon

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

Comment posted by Mark Deibert on November 7, 2011 at 7:59 PM

Great shot, Ron! Beautiful colors...and the fg grass helps give the photo depth. You're not kidding when you say these are hard to catch out in the open. I have a couple near me that I can either hear, but not see; or see, but only for a split moment. Hopefully my persistence will pay off as handsomely as yours has.

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

Comment posted by Gary Gulash on November 7, 2011 at 8:28 PM

Hi Ron. I saw some of these birds last summer but didn't manage any keepers - they were sooo spooky, so I understand your statement about catching them in the open. I think the colors of the pickleweed work very well with this colorful bird, the texture is also wonderful. I'm ok with the grass in the lrc, but the image might be stronger if it were not there in my opinion. I'm inspired to travel next summer and give this species another crack.

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

Comment posted by Richard Ditch on November 7, 2011 at 10:03 PM

I must say that this takes me by surprise - this is so unlike your other avian images. At first I found the color to be overwhelming but in the larger image they really work. My only issue is the OOF grasses at bottom right.

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

Comment posted by Rob Graham on November 7, 2011 at 11:04 PM

I'm impressed that you managed to catch one in the open :). The colors are great. The foreground grass is a bit distracting, but given the difficulty in getting a good photo of these, I can ignore the grass to admire to bird.

Registered on August 22, 2006, 842 Posts, 2824 Comments

Comment posted by Ray Whitt on November 8, 2011 at 8:11 AM

The colors are beautiful, wonderful image,

Ray

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

Comment posted by Howard Cheek on November 8, 2011 at 1:20 PM

These must be one the most beautifully colored birds out there Ron, I'd be ecstatic to get a shot like this..
This setting really takes it up a notch as well

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

Comment posted by Angela McCain on November 8, 2011 at 10:12 PM

Gorgeous splashes of color and a full view of the pheasant make this a pleasure to view.

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

Comment posted by Ken Archer on November 8, 2011 at 10:36 PM

Great looking bird, in great habitat. Doesn't look like you had much time to make this image. Sweet Photo Ron

Ken Archer

Registered on October 28, 2004, 222 Posts, 6683 Comments

Comment posted by Richard Teller on November 9, 2011 at 1:02 PM

I grew up around pheasants and there are not a lot of images I like because they are hard to get a good angle and clear shot of them. I really like this image though. I think the color really adds to the image. You have great detail and color in the bird.

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

Comment posted by Nate Chappell on November 9, 2011 at 11:00 PM

Great shot Ron, the pickleweed colors add a lot to this image, the oof grasses on the right are balanced nicely by the grasses on the left.

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