Belted Kingfisher

Image Critiques Avian Critiques
1

Hi All,

As I am sure a lot of people here know, shooting kingfishers can be extremely difficult. They are the most flighty animal I have ever tried to get close to. Getting a photo of this one required me arriving at her perch one hour before sunrise in full camo, with fake grass covering the camera gear. I’d been scouting this kingfisher for years and knew her schedule. Even so, she’d busted me dozens of times before. The bird photo gods finally smiled down upon me that morning.

In post, I cropped a bit for comp., toned down the white feathers on the left side of her neck, burned the perch a bit, resized, sharpened the bird, and reduced noise on the BG. All C&C welcome.

LWG_1428 copy
LWG_1428 copy1700×1004 459 KB

Techs:
D3s
700mm, tripod
1/1000
f/5.6
ISO 800

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@feelingruby

1 Like
2

Lyle, he is really marked well, and you captured it nicely. I can image this wasn’t an easy shot at that hour of the morning.

3

Yes kingfishers are tough. But they almost always return to the same spot. And yes they are extremely skittish. You did a good job on the pose and the detail. I just find the image to be oversaturated.

4

Beautiful job, Lyle. Great pose and perfect techs. Well done and congratulations on getting such a fine image of this hard to get bird.

5

Lyle, your hard work and behavioral study paid off well with a fine portrait of this very wary bird. She looks to be on high alert.

6

A really nice pose and the dark bg sets off the kingfisher well. Good for you to be persistent and get the photo.