American Coot (Fulica americana), Ridgefield National Wildlife Refuge, Washingon, USA
I’ve been sitting on this image for about 9 years now. Finally got the processing where I like it. I don’t see too many Coots posted anywhere, much less in flattering light and decent background (water). Plus whenever I see a Coot I can’t help but smile at the thought of those utilitarian but goofy looking feet.
This fellow was quite cooperative, most are fairly skitish. I guess it’s hard to hide from 840mm, though…
Specific Feedback Requested
Any comments appreciated.
Technical Details
Is this a composite: No
Canon 5DIII, EF 600mm f/4 + 1.4 TC, beanbag on the car window.
1/640 sec @ f/7.1, ISO 400
This is almost the full frame, just a tad cropped off the right to avoid full on centering…
All the dark colors are handled well; distinctive from each other. Nice pose and I like the concentric circles in the water. I’d be tempted to remove the detached reflected head.
With coot photos, I find that most of the time the whites are blown. In your photo, everything has been exposed perfectly. The details are nice and crisp. Comp is fine as presented. Well done…Jim
David, yes it is sometimes tough shooting from the car at Ridgefield.
Allen, I tried removing the detached reflected head and the double beak reflection then became too distracting…and trying to remove that too really was a mess…this was one of the reasons I sat on this one for so long. Thanks again all.
