kellytatephoto
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marizzza
March 10, 2015
Join the conversation. Add a comment or even better, a critique. Let's get better together!
Eddieuuu071
May 28, 2017
Thank you for submitting your wonderful photo to this challenge! I have added it to my favorites so best of luck!
russellnicholson
July 07, 2020
Superb Details and Fantastic Composition.... The Emerald Green eye really Stands out.... A jewel...😊😊😎😎
Same photographer See allBehind The Lens
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Behind The Lens
Location
This photo was taken on the Anhinga Trail in the Everglades National Park. It's a very popular trail with great opportunities to see wildlife. I was just getting started in photography, and thought the trail would be an easy way to challenge myself with the unpredictability of wildlife.Time
I took this photo in the middle of the afternoon. I hadn't been expecting to take many photos since it's never a given with wildlife. But in this case I was gifted virtually as much time as I wanted, as the bird was happy where she was. I spent about a half hour photographing this female anhinga, who was drying off after a midday swim.Lighting
The mid-afternoon lighting actually worked to my advantage; it allowed me to avoid harsh shadows from my perspective and also brought out some of the detail in her feathers. I was captivated by her eye and the brightness of the day allowed me to handhold my camera and still capture a lot of the details that would not have otherwise been possible.Equipment
This was shot was handheld with a Canon EOS Rebel T3 with a Tamron 70-300mm lens.Inspiration
Initially I was just walking by the anhinga and watching as it dried off in the sunlight. She stretched her wings and would sit motionless and then would tuck her wings back and preen, twisting her head to reach most of the way down her back. As she was preening her crystalline blue eye was captivating against the dark feathers and I drew out my camera. I wanted to capture the intrigue I felt as I watched her and draw my audience into the photo as she had done with me.Editing
I did very minimal post processing on this photo, everything was done in Lightroom 5. I slightly increased the contrast and helped bring out some of the color. In additional I removed some chromatic aberration and sharpened the details.In my camera bag
Honestly, I probably carry too much, since I took this photo I've acquired a lot more gear and updated my camera body and have trouble choosing what to leave behind. Currently I have a pretty good compromise, and I carry my Canon 70D body, along with some Tamron lens: 17-50mm, 10-24mm and 70-300mm and circular polarizers for each lens. I also carry a shutter release, Cokin graduated Neutral Density filters (2 stop, 4 stop and a 6 stop), as well as a 9 stop Hoya variable ND filter (which I love!) And last but not least a Manfrotto 055 carbon fiber tripod which has saved me on more occasions than I can count, it's so stable!Feedback
It sounds somewhat cliché but I would recommend working the scene. If you can, start by observing your subject and figure out what draws you to that animal or scene. Try to incorporate that feeling or feature into your photograph. Once you are shooting, move around, try different angles. Things look different on the back of your camera screen than they do on a computer, by trying different approaches you'll increase your success and probably end up with something much more unique than what you had started shooting. My best shots have come after working a particular scene for a while, the best ones always seem like they are at the end for me, once I've exhausted all of the obvious options and really have to put effort into making it different than what I've already shot.