Great Egret picking up a stick

Seen in a Louisiana rookery.

Canon 7D2, 400mm f4 DO IS II, 1.4x TC III, monopod
ISO 400, f7.1, 1/3200s

Any comments appreciated.

You may only download this image to demonstrate post-processing techniques.

This is really cool, Allen. I like the action a lot. Given the angle it’s flying, I think you could get away with a tighter crop and emphasize the action even more.

Oh wow, this is stunning. That wing position, extended legs, and twigs dragging on the water tells a lot of story. Then the detail starts to come in: the breeding plumage, the water splash… I like that you have the green on the bird (breeding plumage) echoed by the background, I think that ties in the entire image.

My only suggestion is to work on the brighter reflection of the tree trunks on the darker portion of the water at the bottom. Some kind of darkening of those areas would make the image sings.

Very cool shot. I can’t think of a thing to add other than maybe tightening the crop just a bit. How bout the green of the bird and the green of the BG AND the black stick and the black legs? Gotta love it.

I love it. So much fun when you catch a bird doing something besides looking pretty. Your bgnd is quite nice and lighting is wonderful. Good detail on the bird. I like this, congrats!

Jim