Heron Preening
May, 2018Views
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Winner in Heron Photo Challenge
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Behind The Lens
Location
There is a rookery back in the hills on a ranch near my Montana home. I had photographed herons there before in the summer when there were young ones in the nests. But this was in the spring so there were no leaves yet to obscure the herons that had gathered to begin nesting.Time
I went fairly early in the morning with a friend over the hills as far as we could drive. Then we hiked down into the rookery and sat quietly, listening to the herons eerie calls as they flew above us and settled on branches and nests.Lighting
There was thin cloud cover so the lighting was soft.Equipment
I used a Nikon D7000 with a Sigma 150-600 mm lens. The camera was hand held so I could move around quickly to follow the action and I braced myself against a tree for stability. The camera was set with an ISO 2000 at 1/2500 and f/9.Inspiration
I shot a lot of photos of herons flying, standing like sentinels on their nests, and even walking across the treetops from branch to branch. But this one preening really caught my eye with the sensuous curve of its neck and the delicate rearranging of feathers with its long powerful beak. The features really stood out against the white sky.Editing
II was shooting RAW and did some light post processing. I first cropped the image some for composition. I had to lighten the shadows and knock back the highlights to bring out the details. I saturated it just slightly to bring out the rust color, increased the contrast and sharpened it.In my camera bag
I have two D7000 bodies, one with my Sigma 150-600 mm lens (which I use the most) and one with a Nikon DX 18-55 lens. I also have a Nikon 70-300 lens. I do most of my shooting hand held.Feedback
Become very familiar with the subject, its behavior, and its habitat. Be aware of changes in the seasons and the differing opportunities that occur with those changes. Look for characteristic behavior and try to anticipate as much as possible. I shoot over and over in the same places and there is always something new to be seen.
