Spruce Grouse in Meadow

Gallery: AvianPosted February 11, 201656 views4 comments

Grouse are one of my favourite birds to photograph, and spruce grouse may top the list for me personally. This beautiful hen was working through a high meadow in the Rockies at last light when we spotted her. It didn't take us too long to discover the reason for her extra caution...she had a clutch of youngsters tucked away at the edge of the forest waiting for her go-ahead (probably more at the teenage stage than babies).

Jenaya, Josiah and I were able to put her at ease so the group moved out into the meadow and we were able to photograph her at various angles and settings...well, whenever there was any opening in the grass anyway (which meant we sure didn't fill any memory cards during this encounter...definitely a patience-testing exercise waiting for a clear shot of this lady!).

Thanks for your time and any comments, critiques or suggestions you may have. Please view the larger version for best quality!

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Nikon D600
Nikkor AF-S 500mm f/4D IF-ED
ISO 400
1/500sec @ f/4.5
Mounted on FEISOL CT-3372 Elite tripod with Acratech GV2 ballhead and Wimberley Sidekick
Full frame
Restored contrast on part of face from OOF foreground grass intrusion

Comments

4 comments

Comment posted by Pete Bengeyfield on February 12, 2016 at 12:17 PM

The low angle gives a nice perspective on the bird and allows for the OOF FG. Good choice!
Don't think I've ever seen one in a meadow.

Registered on December 2, 2003, 1247 Posts, 3439 Comments

Comment posted by Hans Overduin on February 12, 2016 at 12:29 PM

Hello John ! I love the pose of the Grouse and the fact that it's partly obscured: the see-through-the-vegetation for me usually works very well, since it makes the images a little more exciting ! Nice distribution of sharp and unsharp vegetation as well ! Only thing I wish a little different, would be a little more room on the bottom of the image: I feel like I am missing a bit of the bird if you know what I mean. Other than that: a very pleasing shot ! Cheers, hans

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

Comment posted by Dennis Plank on February 12, 2016 at 1:30 PM

I can imagine you did a lot of waiting for this one, John. A very cool through-the-grass look at this bird. Nicely done.

devil

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

Comment posted by Thomas Haney on February 13, 2016 at 8:01 PM

Beautiful shot John, I love the soft light and low angle of view. The sharp stalk of grass to the right of the grouse was the first thing to catch my eye, and I can't decide whether it adds or detracts from the image. On one hand it distracts a bit of attention from the bird, but on the other the bird seems to be looking right at it, making it vital to the composition. Oh well, either way a beautiful shot.

Registered on April 7, 2013, 138 Posts, 537 Comments