Egret on fire

Gallery: AvianPosted January 27, 2013212 views17 comments

This is a photo of a great white egret in the last light of day. I caught this shot as the sun was back lighting the egret and the dark shadow of the surrouding shoreline cast black shadows over the lake. I'm considering entering this in a nature contest later this year and curious about how the shot impacts you and your thoughts about the overall quality and composition. Thanks in advance for your thoughts/recommendations:

Here's some info on my settings and equipment:
Canon 7D with 500mm Canon 4.0 IS lens and 1.4x extender
Shot at 1/1600th sec., f 5.6 and ISO of 400.

Thanks,
Mike

Comments

17 comments

Comment posted by Christine Adams on January 27, 2013 at 6:30 AM

This impacts me quite a bit! It's gorgeous!! I do wish there was more room at the top, bottom and the right (just a bit) to give it room to breathe. So if this was cropped, I'd think about adjusting it. Really, really nice! I'd enter that contest!

Registered on January 24, 2006, 119 Posts, 1871 Comments

Comment posted by scott lanz on January 27, 2013 at 7:49 AM

Great image (no pun intended), Mike. This would make a fine submission to the contest. I do agree with Chris about the additional room.

Registered on November 14, 2003, 840 Posts, 12902 Comments

Comment posted by Brian Gatlin on January 27, 2013 at 8:17 AM

love the lighting here, Mike. I agree with the others that this feels pretty tight, and would add a little room, top, bottom and right, if you have it.

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

Comment posted by Michael Cothran on January 27, 2013 at 9:25 AM

The backlighting is superb, but I don't like the bird's "posture" here. I just don't think it's very attractive. It's one of those caught moments where the subject is somewhat chaotic or awkward in appearance, but captured in great lighting. It certainly doesn't hurt to enter it.

Registered on December 5, 2012, 31 Posts, 730 Comments

Comment posted by Mike Ramy on January 27, 2013 at 10:33 AM

Mr. Martin,
More room was my first thought, no problem, that’s easily fixed. Everything else about this image is award winning. The back lighting is amazing and the “somewhat chaotic or awkward in appearance” look of the subject (as Mr. Cothran put it) adds a great deal of interest to this image and sets it apart, IMO.
‘Award Winning Photographer Mike Martin’ . . . has a nice sound to it

Registered on June 16, 2012, 567 Posts, 2809 Comments

Comment posted by Hans Overduin on January 27, 2013 at 11:52 AM

Lovely and impacting image - would be curious to see a larger version though. Some more room could work indeed, as others suggested. But all in all a gem of an image, well done ! Cheers, Hans

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

Comment posted by Philip Hodgkins on January 27, 2013 at 12:47 PM

A wonderful shot of the egret and the watery action and environment. I agree with Chris on the additional room. Cloning extra room on the top and the RHS would add to the balance. I am fine with the bottom. Mike has put it better than I can about the "awkwardness" (or lack thereof) of the egret.

Registered on July 24, 2006, 2741 Posts, 12349 Comments

Comment posted by John Neukirch on January 27, 2013 at 12:48 PM

Everyone else has commented about the cropping so I won't repeat. An interesting action shot to say the least. A large version would be nice as something about the head bugs me. It appears to be a little OOF and some pretty harsh highlights on top of the beak. The eye also is really hard to make out. It is a great capture, other than the crop I'd play around with the head area and see if it could be made to POP a more.

Registered on July 9, 2012, 207 Posts, 1476 Comments

Comment posted by Marlise Launstein on January 27, 2013 at 2:03 PM

Amazing! The egrets wings look really cool spread out like that! Great job!

Registered on August 31, 2011, 28 Posts, 175 Comments

Comment posted by Jim DeWitt on January 27, 2013 at 4:31 PM

Lovely light. Cropping issues, as others have noted. If it were mine, I'd try some selective work in the head to try and recover a bit more detail there. Good luck in the contest!

Registered on August 28, 2006, 1240 Posts, 8506 Comments

Comment posted by SandyRichardsBrown on January 27, 2013 at 8:26 PM

Excellent image! Love the "glow" from the last light.
I agree that the comp is quite tight, and I'd also allow more room on the top, bottom, and right.
Sandy

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

Comment posted by Mike Martin on January 28, 2013 at 8:21 AM

Thanks, all for your kind comments and helpful suggestions. Much appreciated!!! Mike

Registered on January 25, 2013, 4 Posts, 6 Comments

Comment posted by Ian Plant on January 28, 2013 at 11:32 AM

this is really sweet - love the light, pose, and the highlights in the water (or are they water droplets?). Top shelf work.

Registered on July 7, 2008, 271 Posts, 1657 Comments

Comment posted by Dennis Plank on January 28, 2013 at 12:13 PM

Cool pose, Mike. Parts of the far wing look a bit overexposed. If you were shooting in RAW you might be able to bring them down a bit and recover some detail. I like the composition.

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

Comment posted by Wayne Willison on January 29, 2013 at 9:52 AM

Great action image. Might be a little overexposed on the right wing, but a fine shot.

Registered on April 10, 2009, 292 Posts, 3967 Comments

Comment posted by Rebecka on January 29, 2013 at 2:27 PM

Looks like he's lit from within. A very memorable image!

Registered on February 5, 2009, 170 Posts, 924 Comments

Comment posted by Elizabeth Arellano on January 30, 2013 at 1:17 PM

Wow! Well done.

Registered on February 18, 2008, 35 Posts, 302 Comments