Mandarin

[FrankMi]

I had a chance to stop by Tomahawk Lake in Black Mountain, NC on my way to Tennessee this past weekend. I wasn't able to stay long so I grabbed what I could of the Mandarin Ducks that make their home there.

Although nowhere near as nice as some of the images posted by the bird pros on CiC, I was happy to just be able to get a picture of the Mandarins. I would have loved to have the time to stay there for a few days and learn their habits, see them in flight, and get more interesting poses.



I really like the hood that looks like a helmit which is better defined in the refection.

C&C anyone?

[Nilotna]

Good picture, perhaps lacking some depth to the colors, or it may be my monitor ¿?

[Dave Humphries]

Hi Frank,

You probably don't need me to say this, but it may help others.

I really like the hood that looks like a helmit which is better defined in the refection.

That's because the Mandarin itself is over exposed (whites are blown) and the reflection is less so.

I was shooting one quite like this only yesterday and in the shade, with -0.5 EC, it still blew a few pixels, but in sunshine, I find the -EC needs to be at least -1.5 stops to prevent those narrow bits of white blowing. Exactly how much obviously depends what metering mode is in use and what background it is shot against.

In the UK, our Mandarin looks different, but oddly, so far, I haven't found a trace of what you and I both shot!

Cheers,

[FrankMi]

Hi Frank,

You probably don't need me to say this, but it may help others.



That's because the Mandarin itself is over exposed (whites are blown) and the reflection is less so.

I was shooting one quite like this only yesterday and in the shade, with -0.5 EC, it still blew a few pixels, but in sunshine, I find the -EC needs to be at least -1.5 stops to prevent those narrow bits of white blowing. Exactly how much obviously depends what metering mode is in use and what background it is shot against.

In the UK, our Mandarin looks different, but oddly, so far, I haven't found a trace of what you and I both shot!

Cheers,

Thanks Dave, you bring up a very good point! At the start I had checked for blown highlights in ACR and corrected them. However, I don't usually go back and verify that the post processing hasn't introduced issues. Although I usually take a quick look at the histogram in Levels for the final image, this points out the need to open the final result in ACR where problems of this type are more readily noticeable. I'll need to incorporate that into my workflow. It's quick and easy and may help avoid this kind of embarrassment (and Lord knows, I need all the help I can get in that area!). LOL!

Thanks again!

[FrankMi]

Well, I just saw Mike's A VERY frustrating outing... post and based on his duck image it got me to searching the web for the differences between Wood Ducks and Mandarin Ducks.

http://www.feathersite.com/Poultry/N...RKWoodies.html

The location I looked for the Mandarin Ducks was reported to be one of only two in the US where Mandarin Ducks breed in the wild.

Now I am more knowledgeable but also more frustrated as that shots I got were clearly Wood Ducks! I'll need to back and see if I can find any of the Mandarins that reportedly live there in Black Mountain, NC.