Early Morning Ballet

[Bill_Reichhardt]

This image was taken shortly after sunrise in the back corner of a cove. These Great Egrets created the impression of a dance as they jostled for position looking for small fish.

Specific Feedback Requested

Any feedback welcome: composition, lighting, story telling, interaction of the birds within the scene.

Technical Details

Olympus OMD EM1 Mark III, Zuiko 150-400mm. ISO 800, f/9, 1/2000

[Mark_Muller]

Hi Bill,
What a beautiful, serendipitous scene! That you caught these three in these positions is great. I just love the way their shapes complement each other, as if it was choreographed Beautiful lighting just adds to the elegance. We’ll done!

[peter (Peter J. Morrissey)]

Hi Bill
It is fun to watch Egrets content for space and this is a great example of that. I looked at the shot in DXO and frond, if you bring up the shadows and blacks, this photograph shows a lot more detail. Nice catch.
Peter

[David_Bostock]

Welcome back, Bill. Excellent behavior shot of these Egrets. I also like the low key, dark feeling overall. Excellent.

[Dennis_Plank]

@peter has an interesting point. I’m not sure whether a lighter background would work as it might distract from the dancers, but it might be worth looking at. I like the poses and setting and the exposure of the whites looks good. A very good image.

[Allen_Sparks]

Very nice poses captured - must have been very interesting to watch. I think the side lighting is a challenge for this image and bringing up the shadows a bit more as Peter suggests may be a good move as long as the noise does not get out of hand. Really nice behavioral shot.

[Bill_Reichhardt]

@Mark_Muller

Hi Bill,
What a beautiful, serendipitous scene! That you caught these three in these positions is great. I just love the way their shapes complement each other, as if it was choreographed Beautiful lighting just adds to the elegance. We’ll done!

Thanks Mark. I really appreciate your feedback.

[Bill_Reichhardt]

@peter

Hi Bill
It is fun to watch Egrets content for space and this is a great example of that. I looked at the shot in DXO and frond, if you bring up the shadows and blacks, this photograph shows a lot more detail. Nice catch.
Peter

Peter, Thanks for your critique and comment on bringing up the shadows. I remember intentionally underexposing this shot to mute the background since the birds were very close to an elevated shoreline. Also, I wanted to highlight the contrast for birds without blowing out the whites. A tricky (and lucky) maneuver. I will try to play with this some more. Thank you.

[Bill_Reichhardt]

@David_Bostock

Welcome back, Bill. Excellent behavior shot of these Egrets. I also like the low key, dark feeling overall. Excellent.

Thank you David. Glad to be back. After a bit of a hiatus I look forward to more participation in NPN.

[Bill_Reichhardt]

@Allen_Sparks

Very nice poses captured - must have been very interesting to watch. I think the side lighting is a challenge for this image and bringing up the shadows a bit more as Peter suggests may be a good move as long as the noise does not get out of hand. Really nice behavioral shot.

Thanks Allen. I appreciate the feedback. Bill

[Bill_Reichhardt]

@Dennis_Plank

has an interesting point. I’m not sure whether a lighter background would work as it might distract from the dancers, but it might be worth looking at. I like the poses and setting and the exposure of the whites looks good. A very good image.

Thank you Dennis. Bill