alexhalpin

DSC_6228

NIKON D300

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Aperture 56/10 ISO 250 Shutter 1/30 Focal Length 2000/10

upload_date

Sep, 2022

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Same photographer See all Behind The Lens

This was shot in the late afternoon in the Chinese section of the Huntington Gardens in Los Angeles.

This is a bird in the Malibu Lagoon. There were many birds there that day, but this one was off by itself.

This picture is from my trip to the Huntington Gardens. I got this one early in the day.

This tree in the UCLA botanical garden is very interesting when looking from the bottom.

These are a part of a group of African daisies I found in a garden.

For this shot, I lined up these vases to get interesting effects with the depth of field.

This is from the giraffe exhibit in The Living Desert.

The pier in this picture is the Malibu Pier as seen from the Malibu lagoon during sunset. In the background, there are the Santa Monica Mountains.

Taken in the Chinese section of the Hunting Gardens, the koi fish seen here are a few of many. They swam up to me thinking I would give them food.

I found this fallen tree while hiking in Topanga.

This is from the desert section of the Huntington Gardens. The bird is wild.

Behind The Lens

Location

When I first started photography, I went on a trip to the Huntington Gardens in Pasadena, California. I took numerous good pictures that day. This particular photo came from the desert garden. The chain that the bird is perched on is the barrier between the guests and the cacti.

Time

On my trip to the Hunting Gardens, I walked around to see all it had to offer. I went to the desert garden fairly late in the day, around 4 p.m.

Lighting

For this shot, I was not able to do any planning with the lighting. The bird in the picture was only on the chain for a few seconds. It was lucky that I managed to set up my shot and focus before the bird flew away. This picture was taken with a long lens, so my camera's built-in flash would not have been very effective, and it surely would have scared the bird away.

Equipment

This picture was taken on a Nikon D300 with an 18-200mm f3.5-5.6 lens. For this particular shot, I zoomed in all the way. I did not use a tripod because I was walking around the garden all day, and didn't want to cary it around. I opted not to use my camera's built-in flash because of the distance between me and the bird, and I also didn't want to disturb the bird.

Inspiration

My love of nature inspired me to take this photo. I went to the Huntington Gardens to capture plants, but when I jumped at the opportunity when I saw a beautiful photo of a bird. I kept the lighting natural as to not disturb the bird.

Editing

For this picture, I did very minimal post-processing. All I did was add a little bit of contrast, and slightly increase the black point.

In my camera bag

In my camera bag, I usually carry a Nikon D7200 body (I upgraded from the D300 a few months after this picture was taken), an 18-200mm f3.5-f5.6, and a 50mm f1.4 prime lens. I love the 18-200mm lens because it is very versatile. I often go on hikes with my camera where I don't want to carry my bag. The 18-200mm lens is great for this because it is light enough to comfortably have it on my neck for a few hours, and its versatility lets me take a wide variety of shots on the go. I carry the 50mm lens because it is very small and can come in handy if I want a very wide aperture. Sometimes, I also carry a 10-24mm f3.5-4.5 if I anticipate wanting a very wide focal length. My best pictures with this lens have been on sunny days at the beach.

Feedback

My advice to anyone who wants to capture a similar photograph to mine, is to be patient. I did not plan or expect this photo. If you keep going out with your camera, a shot like this will come eventually.

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alexhalpin

DSC_6228

Behind The Lens

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