Southern Lapwing, Oscoda, Michigan (Birder Shot)

Image Critiques Avian Critiques
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Image:

Lapwing2
Lapwing21500×1200 386 KB

Description: Sometimes I hope for a quality shot and was thwarted. A Southern lapwing has been living at the Wurtsmith Airport since late May. his specie is found in South and Central America and this may represent the first documented US record that is not the result of a bird escaping from an aviary. It was found along one of the roads about 135 yards out and this shot is the result of a brutal crop (80% of frame removed). I used the Enhance feature of Adobe Bridge and Camera Raw to upscale the image before cropping. Focus and exposure was spot on and all that I needed was to have the bird approach closer to me. Not having enough pixels certainly affected the overall quality of the image. I was able to get some closer shots later, but heat shimmer prevented me from getting anything tack sharp. Anyway, it is a cool bird to see and hope that I get a better shot of it in the near future.

Specific Feedback Requested:

Pertinent technical details or techniques: D850 600mm f4 (1/2500 sec., f5.6, ISO 1250) Topaz DeNoise AI, Enhance for upscaling, crop for comp, levels, Brightness & Contrast.

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Wow! Thats certainly out of range. A very neat bird and extremely good image quality for that long a shot. Congratulations.

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I’ll second the “wow”. For a documentary shot this turned out very well. Pretty good detail in the bird and the setting is pleasant as well. Congratulations on a rarity and good luck in getting closer.

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Hi Jim, quality looks good considering the circumstances. Good idea to include the bird with the negative space.

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Hi Jim
Nice work on making this long shot work. Im agree with Allen, the Southern Lapwing looks good in that open space.
Peter

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