Birds-3
Nov, 2015Views
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Outstanding Creativity
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Magnificent Capture
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Same photographer See allBehind The Lens
Behind The Lens
Location
I took this photo on Lake Erie at Headlands Beach State Park in Mentor, Ohio. I was near the east end of the beach. This beach is about 10 minutes from my house and I go there 1-2 times per year to shoot sunsets.Time
This shot was taken at dusk, around 8:30pm in August 2015. I keep an eye on the clouds in the late afternoon. The way the sky sets up help me determine whether it might be worth a trip to the beach. This particular night looked promising for a sunset. The sky wasn't quite as spectacular as I had hoped, but the flight of the birds made up for it. When I had setup my camera, the birds were hanging on the beach about 50 yards behind me. Just before this photo the park ranger drove by announcing the park will be closing soon. His car got the birds moving.Lighting
As a landscape photographer, time of day is crucial to the shot. Catching the sky just as the sun is setting, the clouds reflect the light and brilliant color.Equipment
This was shot on a Canon T4i with a 18-55mm lens at 18mm at F/11, 1/100 sec and 100 ISO. The camera was on a tripod and used a remote shutter release. I had the tripod short, so the camera was low to the ground, helping to provide some foreground interest.Inspiration
Lake Erie has some of the most beautiful sunsets, and there are several nice locations with within a 15 minute drive of my house. I keep an eye on the sky for potentially colorful sunsets. This night appeared setup for a nice sunset, but when I got to the beach, the cloud layer at the horizon was quite thick. I still had some colors, but not as brilliant as I would have liked. The birds were actually a happy accident! I normally don't like birds in the sky in my photos because they look like dust spots. As they flew over me I kept shooting. When I got home and started processing, the picture with the birds caught my eye with the movement and action of the shot. The inspiration came when I started processing.Editing
RAW files are very dull straight out of the camera. This shot was no exception. The original shot was exposed for the sky, so I merged the beach from another image to balance the exposure. The only other photoshop work was to remove some dust spots. In the Lightroom the image was processed to enhance the colors in the sky - typical highlights, shadows, whites, blacks, and contrast.In my camera bag
Shooting primarily landscapes, I carry my 10-22mm lens and my 70-300mm lens. If I plan on photographing my dog, I will bring my 50mm prime. I have a canon remote shutter release. I usually carry my Opteka tripod. My camera body is a Canon T4i.Feedback
This shot involved a lot of luck. I had planned to shoot the sunset. The birds were a happy accident. Obviously you need a location where birds congregate. And you need a way to get them moving - I suggest bringing a friend who can approach them from behind. Set your camera for continuous shooting mode. While exposed for the sky, snap from the time the birds start flying until they are clear out in the distance. Either before or after the flight of birds, take another couple shots exposing for the foreground from the same location, so that you can blend them in post-processing.
