close iframe icon
approved icon quincyfloyd avatar
quincyfloyd
Guira Cuckoo Quartet
Banner

Guira Cuckoo Quartet



behind the lens badge
cameraNIKON D7000

settings Aperture f/9.5 ISO 1000 Shutter 1/20 Focal Length 2200/10 

upload_dateDec, 2015

Views

2272

Likes

Awards

People's Choice in Crazy Hair in Nature Photo Challenge
Peer Award
mohammadhadiboojariloodariche jorgealbertopealozapealoza Kivera WanderingSage AnjaChooPhotography RobynC Miguel_A_Lera +74
Absolute Masterpiece
easterdigby manhattanbronx berryrasp71 Super_tramp shaunneywill pinkredybellyness barnardfiffe +56
Superb Composition
ruthgustdaily terryacregan-leidigh KenyaJaxon Kazelzs William_Doyle myriamverne-soury drgulrez +52
Top Choice
carolcardillo Houndog Moorthy markcote lazanzarapazza ingridcelestawillydehert Lewis-C-Whittaker +44
Magnificent Capture
Steve-n-Ning charlesbutton rufust JayneBug thecatsmeow Carol12 douglasunger +21
All Star
channingshepard cristinacovas Elyzabeth jlappen dan55john rhiannyn Mother_Nature +16
Outstanding Creativity
Moson Belfastgirl jimages avivwolf louannfanning bwphoto69 chrisboshoff +5
Superior Skill
jdmarks64 kingchapman rachelhelenhudson ImagerVisuals JanetDaniel DocTom dan_williams28 +1
Love it
ConnieFresn ritafayeadams SojournNewEngland
Genius
tredyh kiraballerina
Virtuoso
patxrobinson

Emotions

Impressed
wdfoto edraubenheimer jorgealbertopealozapealoza Dawgbyte
Happy
mohammadhadiboojariloodariche

Top Ranks

Creative Boundaries Photo ContestTop 30 rank week 1
Inspired By The World Photo ContestTop 10 rank
Inspired By The World Photo ContestTop 10 rank week 1
Wildlife Families Photo ContestTop 30 rank
Wildlife Families Photo ContestTop 30 rank week 1
View more
Cute Baby Animals Photo ContestTop 20 rank
Cute Baby Animals Photo ContestTop 10 rank week 1
Once Upon A Time Photo ContestTop 20 rank
Once Upon A Time Photo ContestTop 10 rank week 1
World Photography Day Photo ContestTop 10 rank
World Photography Day Photo ContestTop 10 rank week 2
World Photography Day Photo ContestTop 10 rank week 1
We Love Animals Photo ContestTop 10 rank
Covers Photo Contest Vol 36Top 10 rank
We Love Animals Photo ContestTop 10 rank week 1
Covers Photo Contest Vol 36Top 10 rank week 1
Around the World Photo Contest By DiscoveryTop 10 rank
Around the World Photo Contest By DiscoveryTop 10 rank week 1
Monthly Pro Vol 28 Photo ContestTop 10 rank
Monthly Pro Vol 28 Photo ContestTop 10 rank week 1
Image of the Year Photo Contest 2016Top 10 rank
Image of the Year Photo Contest 2016Top 10 rank week 1
Our Natural World Photo ContestTop 10 rank
Our Natural World Photo ContestTop 10 rank week 1
Multiple Photo ContestTop 10 rank
Multiple Photo ContestTop 10 rank week 2
Multiple Photo ContestTop 10 rank week 1
Animal Kingdom Photo Contest Vol 1Top 10 rank
Animal Kingdom Photo Contest Vol 1Top 10 rank week 2
Birds Of A Feather Photo ContestTop 20 rank
Animal Kingdom Photo Contest Vol 1Top 10 rank week 1
Birds Of A Feather Photo ContestTop 20 rank week 1
Covers Photo Contest Vol 28Top 20 rank
Covers Photo Contest Vol 28Top 20 rank week 2
Covers Photo Contest Vol 28Top 10 rank week 1
Herds Photo ContestTop 30 rank
Herds Photo ContestTop 20 rank week 1
From Afar: Wildlife Photo ContestTop 10 rank
From Afar: Wildlife Photo ContestTop 10 rank week 1
Image Of The Month Photo Contest Vol 5Top 10 rank
Image Of The Month Photo Contest Vol 5Top 20 rank week 1

Categories

13 Comments |
marilenavaccarini PRO
 
marilenavaccarini December 23, 2015
nice capture
quincyfloyd
quincyfloyd December 23, 2015
Thank you
toddcollier Platinum
 
toddcollier December 23, 2015
Love this shot Congrats!
quincyfloyd
quincyfloyd December 23, 2015
Thank you very much!
bridgetrendall
 
bridgetrendall January 29, 2016
Fantastic capture with great timing :)
quincyfloyd
quincyfloyd January 29, 2016
Thank you very much, but the subjects helped a lot.
Kazza60
 
Kazza60 January 29, 2016
awesome capture .. LOL love it !!
quincyfloyd
quincyfloyd January 29, 2016
Thank you very much.
kerryannehall
 
kerryannehall February 09, 2016
Join the conversation. Add a comment or even better, a critique. Let's get better together!
terrysigns13
 
terrysigns13 February 11, 2016
Quincyfloyd...This is SO cute!
Amazing little faces all on alert.
Terrific shot! You should get this into every challenge that it will fit into! I LOVE IT!
quincyfloyd
quincyfloyd February 11, 2016
Thank you very much. It is one of my favorite shots.
julie_cavell
 
julie_cavell February 25, 2016
Brilliant shot love it
quincyfloyd
quincyfloyd February 25, 2016
Thank you very much!
AWAAphotos
 
AWAAphotos April 02, 2016
Congrats on your peoples choice win! Thank you for entering.
quincyfloyd
quincyfloyd April 02, 2016
Thank you very much! And thank you for coming up with such a creative challenge!
MickAlicic PRO
 
MickAlicic April 28, 2016
Beautiful! Voted in Wild funny face.
quincyfloyd
quincyfloyd April 28, 2016
Thank you very much!
catherinethompson PRO+
 
catherinethompson May 18, 2016
Love it. Well Done.
quincyfloyd
quincyfloyd May 18, 2016
Thank you very much. It is much appreciated.
nina050
 
nina050 January 22, 2017
This is just wonderful....bad hair day indeed!
quincyfloyd
quincyfloyd January 23, 2017
Thank you very much! I was in the right spot at the right time for this capture.
Belfastgirl
 
Belfastgirl May 05, 2017
Cute little guys
quincyfloyd
quincyfloyd May 05, 2017
Yes they are captivating on a number of levels.
Carol12 PRO
 
Carol12 August 10, 2017
I just love this!
quincyfloyd
quincyfloyd August 10, 2017
Than you for your kind words.

Submitted to Photo Contests

Tags

#cuckoo #animal #bird #nature
See all

Behind The Lens

Location

This shot was taken at the Bronx Zoo, where I have not not visited in quite a while. I was looking for something different to capture and luckily stopped by these characters for a while.

Time

I took the shot in the early morning, heeding the naturalists who recommend shooting early in the day or later in the afternoon when the animals are most active.

Lighting

The lighting while not especially dark, was not bright enough to capture the quick motion of the birds without boosting the ISO up to 1000 while keeping my aperture around 9.5 or so since I wanted an acceptable depth of field.

Equipment

This handheld shot was taken with a Nikon D7000 and a Nikon zoom lens 28-300 mm, since I wanted as close a capture as I could. There was no other equipment involved.

Inspiration

Once I set eyes on them with their unique feather arrangement and propensity to cluster, I stayed in the location until I had a capture that I was satisified with. It was challenging since they were constantly moving about from branch to branch and did not settle in a spot for very long.

Editing

I had to lighten the exposure a bit since I kept the ISO at 1000 to minimize noise that may appear with higher ISO values. I also corrected the white balance so the capture properly reflected the coloring in the feathers.

In my camera bag

I use either my Nikon D7000 or D750 along with a Nikon 105mm prime macro lens and a Nikon 28 - 300 mm zoom lens. I sometimes replace the prime lens with an Altura 8mm fisheye lens if it is applicable to the subject being photographed. I always have a polarizer for each lens since what they do for a scene cannot be easily duplicated, if at all, in post processing.

Feedback

For anyone trying to photograph animals, especially birds, I recommend the early morning or late afternoon hours. To capture the quickness of the birds you need to have a relatively fast shutter speed, 1/250 or higher, which requires a lot of trade offs if you are in a low lighting situation. You also need a little more patience since the animals do not behave as you would like all of the time - so plan to spend a lot of time being prepared to shoot while waiting for the right moment.

See more amazing photos, follow quincyfloyd

User photo
It’s your time to shine! ☀️

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

Already a member? Log In

By continuing, you agree to our Terms of Service, and acknowledge you've read our Privacy Policy Notice.