Very nice. A tripod was used I would guess?
420mm and 1/250th would make for a very difficult hand held shot.
Focus nailed perfectly. Perch in front and rear both out of focus and bird nice and sharp. Well done.
What lens did you use if you don't mind? A 500mm?
Steve is the hummer king around here. Another very nice one.
Well done Steve. Very nice composition.
so beautiful and so sharp!
just a note, is there an halo around the beak?
don't know if it comes from the final sharpening for the website ...
Thanks monte, there is a very good chance it was hand held. I get really close for these shots (around 8 feet). My lens is a canon 300 f/4 L IS + 1.4xTC (sometimes i just use the straight 300) I have gotten shots down to 1/15s handheld with this lens. (not the norm, but it can be done) I usually take several shots of the same composition and bin the bad one's when the shutter speeds are a little low.
Just to give an example of what this lens is capable of when everything is perfect (lighting was possibly the best i've ever seen).................300mm f/5 iso800 handheld 1/60s
Thanks bobo, and paul.
Nicola, yes there is a slight halo around the beak. Came from the sharpening done in DXO. I usually edit my photos with actions and a few will get a touch overdone. That halo is actually disirable for print, so no worries.
Love them both Steve, but the deer is exceptional. It looks like you brought her into the studio for a shoot. Your backgrounds are always so perfect and in this one, I don't know why but her expression brings a tear to my eye.
Wendy
Glad to see the standards don't slip, Steve, even with ones taken from the archives!
Monte, it's the "light" that allows the perfect exposure. In this image, the RGB channels were soo perfectly aligned , allowing a 'great' exposure in 'all' channels. It's all about the light!!!! (and something to look for in your histograms)