White Egret

Gallery: AvianPosted September 28, 20173,962 views7 comments

Hi folks, I am sorry I have been missing from the site. I was up in MD and VA visiting family and friends. I did get a few trips to Assateague NWR for some shots, and this is one of them. Canon 5D Mark III, Canon 300 mm f2.8 with 2X extender on tripod. Cropped to straighten and eliminate some branches at the bottom to about 92% of full frame. Comments and suggestions welcome. I will try to get busy and view and comment on others. Lots to do after getting back home. Editing a ton of photos for one!

Comments

7 comments

Comment posted by Bill Leggett on September 28, 2017 at 6:01 PM

That's some nice gear you're using, Shirley. In contrasty light good exposure latitude is essential, especially in tough lighting situations, which you seemed to have handled well here. There are no significant blowouts in the whites, the shaded parts look natural, and your comp works well. Might just be just but the larger image looks a bit soft. If you include your shooting techs it would be helpful. Thanks for sharing.

Registered on July 21, 2004, 706 Posts, 3233 Comments

Comment posted by Shirley Freeman on September 28, 2017 at 6:17 PM

Well, you can tell I haven't submitted lately, sorry I left off the settings! I shot it at 1/800, f7.1, ISO 200 and, as stated it was on a tripod. I blew the original up on my big screen, and it isn't soft. I think the way the light is hitting him face on, and he is side view to the camera, makes the light look a bit different on the eye, which may cause it to seem soft to you. Anyway, thanks for your comments, and for reminding me to include the settings.

Registered on May 27, 2017, 77 Posts, 844 Comments

Comment posted by Keith Bauer on September 28, 2017 at 11:04 PM

Shirley:

A pretty nice image of the egret. The pose on the perch is nice. I'm distracted by the bright horizontal line behind the bird. The whites are a bit hot with not enough detail apparent even in the larger image which is also showing some softness.

Registered on November 20, 2003, 458 Posts, 4836 Comments

Comment posted by Dennis Plank on September 29, 2017 at 2:07 PM

A nice pose and interesting light, Shirley. The egret looks good for detail and exposure. I do find parts of the background rather distracting, specifically the two oof logs on either side of the Egret and the bright sand? line. I'd be tempted to clone over the logs and burn or otherwise subdue the bright band. I think you have a fine image of this bird with just a bit of tweaking.

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

Comment posted by David Rowe on September 30, 2017 at 9:19 AM

Nice one, Shirley. I’d like to echo the modifications suggested by Dennis. The resulting BG would be so much more ‘painterly’ and for me would detract less from the actual subject.
David

Registered on December 20, 2013, 133 Posts, 286 Comments

Comment posted by Shirley Freeman on September 30, 2017 at 4:37 PM

Thank you all. So far I have been unsuccessful in making the changes that were suggested here. I think one of my weaknesses in photography is editing the photos after capturing the shot. When I try to calm the bright sandy streak, it looks like that is what I did! Just not natural. I do appreciate the helpful suggestions, I really do. I knew when I was taking it that the background might be an issue, and I tried to move some, but was limited. Also didn't want to move much as I might scare him away.

Registered on May 27, 2017, 77 Posts, 844 Comments

Comment posted by Peter J. Morrissey on September 30, 2017 at 5:34 PM

I Shirley
Really nice Egret shot, sometime the back-ground just can not be helped.
Peter

Registered on July 3, 2011, 188 Posts, 969 Comments