brettforsyth

Painted Bunting

Canon EOS 5D Mark III

settings

Aperture f/8.0 ISO 400 Shutter 1/250 Focal Length 400/1

upload_date

Feb, 2015

Views

1113

Likes

+199

Awards

Featured

Contest Finalist in Colorful Birds Photo Contest

Superb Composition

+25

Peer Award

+21

Top Choice

+13

Absolute Masterpiece

Magnificent Capture

All Star

Outstanding Creativity

Superior Skill

Top Ranks

Top 10 rank

Top 10 rank week 1

Top 10 rank

Top 10 rank week 1

Top 10 rank

Top 10 rank week 1

Top 10 rank

Behind The Lens

Location

Painted buntings are extremely rare in Ontario any time of year and even more so in the winter. So when this one was spotted in Oakville, Ontario in a small park on the shores of Lake Ontario the birding lists lit up. Last I heard though this bird wasn't accepted into the sightings records as it appears to be an escaped cage bird.

Time

Oakville is about an hour from my house so I went shortly after breakfast and got there around noon. I didn't spot this bird until about 1:30pm in -20°C. I spent 45min sessions taking photos between getting back in the car to get warm.

Lighting

I'm not a huge fan of flash photos for birds if I can help it. The day was a thick overcast giving nice soft light. Being the dead of winter there wasn't a ton of warmth to the light but I think that helps set the mood.

Equipment

My trusty birding rig is a Canon 5D mkiii + 400mm 5.6L + RRS TVC-34L Tripod + BH-55 LR Ballhead. Awesome lightweight setup for birding.

Inspiration

The chance to photograph a super colourful song bird in the dead of the Canadian winter can't be passed up. Plus I like to go out when it's super cold as no one else will be around.

Editing

As I didn't want to push the ISO to high the image was initially a bit dark so I added +.9 exposure and opened the shadows a little bit. My standard import setting is +10 Clarity/Vibrance in lightroom and I added a bit of saturation.

In my camera bag

I think my biggest issue is I don't leave more stuff at home typically. It wouldn't be a shock to find me out with the 5Dmkiii, 400mm 5.6L, 16-35mm F4L, 100mm ISL, 70-200mm F4L, my tripod and a flash of some kind.

Feedback

I always tell people that the days you don't want to go out are the days you should as everyone else is staying home as well. Learning to recognize bird behaviour is another thing that is a huge help as you a) can be respectful to the bird and not disturb it b) get closer without needing an insanely expensive lens.

See more amazing photos, follow brettforsyth

brettforsyth

brettforsyth

Painted Bunting

Behind The Lens

See more amazing photos, follow brettforsyth

Share photos. Enter contests to win great prizes. Earn coins, get amazing rewards. Join for free.

Share photos. Enter contests to win great prizes.
Earn coins, get amazing rewards. Join for free.