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Marshes

Gallery: Weekly ChallengePosted December 19, 2016168 views6 comments

One of my favorite places to shoot is a cattail marsh. I love the bg that the oof reeds make, and for some reason, the regular denizens all appeal to me. The Red-winged Blackbirds can be challenging with the black plumage, but when they work they're gorgeous. I posted the frame next to this one sometime back in May, but decided it was worth a reprise and processed this frame today.

7DII, Sigma 150-600 C @ 516 mm, beanbag on car window, f/6.3, 1/1600, iso 800, aperture priority, pattern metering, +1/3 EV. Processed in LR5 & CS6. Cropped to a 13.4 MP 4x5 before resizing. Taken at 7:11 AM on May 5th at Ridgefield NWR.

Comments and criticisms are most welcome.

Thanks,

Comments

6 comments

Comment posted by Paul Breitkreuz on December 19, 2016 at 10:26 PM

Dennis, these red winged blackbirds use to be plentiful in our area around the Prado Dam in So Cal. Sadly, not so much now that all the dairies had moved out and the land was carved up for more homes.....Groan !!... cheeky

I suspect this post is dedicated not only to one of your favorite images from 2016, but also an acknowledgment to one of your favorite photographic haunts too.
This is a very fine take on this guy and no doubt was difficult to photograph while he was bobbing around on a cattail branch. This background makes for a perfect backdrop for the intense red and black feathers of the bird too. Marshes and all wetlands have their own unique small world environments. Glad to know you still have access to at least one in your area...... laugh

Registered on February 25, 2006, 525 Posts, 8448 Comments

Comment posted by SandyRichardsBrown on December 19, 2016 at 11:52 PM

Beautiful bird, great pose, and killer BG!
devil

Sandy

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

Comment posted by Mark Seaver on December 20, 2016 at 8:02 AM

The calling pose looks great, Dennis. You've also handled the blacks very will with some outstanding details in the feathers. Yes, that is a fine slightly warm background.

Registered on January 23, 2011, 1103 Posts, 17270 Comments

Comment posted by John Tobias on December 20, 2016 at 10:44 PM

I really like the BG as well as the details in the feathers of the bird. Also, the pose you caught the bird in with the ruffled feathers. Thanks for sharing.

Registered on September 12, 2009, 2120 Posts, 6455 Comments

Comment posted by Paula LeVay on December 20, 2016 at 10:51 PM

Super image, Dennis. The red-winged blackbird's personality really shines through in your image and I love, love, love the background!

Registered on July 29, 2016, 66 Posts, 270 Comments

Comment posted by Ian Wolfenden on December 21, 2016 at 6:47 AM

Love the stark presentation with the bg blurred out, Dennis. The pose of the bird ( I guess swinging vigourously on the cattail as you took this ! ) is eye-catching, and the large version shows up the greyer tones of the feathers nicely. Can see why it's a favourite.

Registered on May 18, 2007, 1108 Posts, 7647 Comments