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Male Ferruginous Duck
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Male Ferruginous Duck

by David Rowe

Gallery: AvianPosted February 19, 201484 views4 comments
Geneva, Switzerland 2/10/14 3.29PM
D300S 150-500mm at 500mm
ISO 250
1/1640s at f9.0 EV +0.67 WB manual Center Weighted Average
Hand held Fairly bright direct sunlight
Original 8 bit TIFF file cropped from 35M to 13.1Mb
Photoshop CS3 No sharpening No Noise reduction

This is one of a dozen male and female birds that chose to winter in a local boat float. In this shot I’m particularly interested in coloured reflections from yachts that compliment the bird’s plumage. I chose not to increase detail on the bird, the background already making striking contrast with the top plumage. I desaturated the blues slightly and toned down the whites at the top of the take.

Your comments, suggestions and criticisms are most welcome.
Thanks for looking

Comments

4 comments
Comment posted by Jerry Austin on February 19, 2014 at 3:36 PM
Nice look at this beautiful bird. I think both the bird and lower water are over saturated. Doesn't quite have that "natural" look. Also, it looks like there is more detail in the bird that might be realized if you were to lighten it a bit. Thanks for posting. This is a beautiful duck.
Registered on January 6, 2012, 651 Posts, 3448 Comments
Comment posted by Richard Ditch on February 19, 2014 at 4:37 PM
I agree with Jerry's critique. I'd like more deal in the duck's plumage (just from some added sharpening), and I find the blue too saturated.
Registered on November 1, 2003, 1031 Posts, 12705 Comments
Comment posted by Philip Hodgkins on February 19, 2014 at 6:30 PM
Good angle on the duck and well positioned in the frame. I'd take some more blue out and lighten the bird a bit.
Registered on July 24, 2006, 2741 Posts, 12349 Comments
Comment posted by Sharon Hallowell on February 21, 2014 at 1:15 AM
I understand that the blue in the lower part of the image is a reflection of a colored yacht, but not sure why you choose not to sharpen the duck. It's a beautiful drake. Sharon
Registered on November 1, 2003, 392 Posts, 4810 Comments