Woodpecker Acrobatics

Gallery: AvianPosted January 12, 201381 views7 comments

On a recent hike December 11, 2013 at Santiago Oaks Regional Park in Orange County, CA we came upon a number of dead trees with nearly a dozen Acorn Woodpeckers actively storing their bounty.

D800 Nikkor 200-400mm lens 400mm ISO250 f/6.3 1/1600 RAW white balance auto Tripod with Wimberley gimbal cropped and processed in CS6

Most of my shots at this range were a little soft, but I hope this one meets your approval. Comments welcome

Comments

7 comments

Comment posted by Jefferson Silva on January 12, 2013 at 4:15 PM

Very nice bird and image.
As you said, it looks a little soft on the large version, but a nice image.

Registered on December 18, 2012, 162 Posts, 975 Comments

Comment posted by Sharon Hallowell on January 12, 2013 at 6:21 PM

Very tough exposure on this cool bird, and I think the whites are still a bit hot. Not sure what you did in processing, but am seeing a halo along the back of the bird and noise in the dark feathers. I like the comp and love the pose. Sharon

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

Comment posted by Tjie Poo on January 12, 2013 at 7:58 PM

Acorn WP with an acorn in the mouth. I like that. If it is me, I'd crop a bit right hand side, but it is fine as it is.

Registered on December 4, 2012, 51 Posts, 511 Comments

Comment posted by Dennis Plank on January 12, 2013 at 10:51 PM

Nice pose, Patrick and a cool acorn. To my eye, there's some "graininess" in the plumage, which I wouldn't expect at iso 250. Did you use a fair amount of sharpening in the bird?

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

Comment posted by Terry Sohl on January 12, 2013 at 11:04 PM

Man, that's one tough exposure in that bright light! Think you did a good job overall though, although agreed the whites might be a little toasty in a few spots. I do like the composition, especially the pose of the bird with nut.

Registered on November 1, 2003, 513 Posts, 6889 Comments

Comment posted by Jim Hackley on January 13, 2013 at 8:01 PM

Wonderful pose with the acorn in the mouth. This is a challenging contrast shot to get in any bright light.

Registered on September 17, 2009, 302 Posts, 5535 Comments

Comment posted by Roger Kirchen on January 13, 2013 at 9:57 PM

Very nice pose and bird. Love that acorn in the bill. Difficult light, I'm sure. Well done.

Registered on March 6, 2011, 95 Posts, 847 Comments