Lady Mallard

[ajsmith]

Took this photo last week at a pond near home. It was late afternoon and the sun was beginning to set. I saw a pair of mallards and thought they looked really pretty in the light. I tried to get a good photo of the male. When he positioned his head a certain way, the sunlight just saturated the green color on his head. Unfortunately, I couldn't seem to get a good shot, I was too slow shooting and he would move again. When I got home and looked at the photos on the computer, I was surprised how the lady mallard looked better than the male. I think it is a combination of the light on her gold feathers and the deep blue of the water. This is pretty much sooc. I opened in camera raw and made slight adjustments. C and C welcome.

[Wavelength]

Wow: Ali you got beautiful concentric water rings around the lady, that makes this image a winner

[NorthernFocus]

Nicely exposed and I agree with Nandakumar that the rings of ripples add to the photo. Birds images are generally improved if you can place yourself as close as possible to eye level with them. Tough to do when their swimming

[ajsmith]

Nandakumar,

Thanks for your comments. I didn't know I had captured the ripples until I saw it on the computer. I was more interested in the golden light when I was taking the photo. I was surprised when I saw it.

[ajsmith]

Dan,
thanks for your comments. That pond is near home, so I will be going there again and next time I will try to get lower when taking the photos.

[Shadowman]

Very nice.

[chauncey]

Ducks are a great subject for practicing one's technique...of coarse improving on that will be tough.

As a side note...in my SE Michigan area, those ponds usually offer Herons or Egrets as subjects.
Are you blessed with the same?

[ajsmith]

John,
Thanks for commenting.

[FrankMi]

Excellent detail and perfect framing by the ripples. The combination turns a typical image of a duck into a stellar one! That is one great capture you have there, Ali.

[ajsmith]

Chauncey,
Thanks for commenting. Yes, there are Herons and Egrets in this area. I haven't seen any Herons for about a month, I think they may have headed to warmer climates. There are also plenty of Canadian Geese and a several swans. I have been practicing trying to capture the geese in flight. Hopefully, I will get a photo worthy of posting.

[Downrigger]

Very nice, would add to the praise above that you were there for the right light I think - the subtlety-yet-richness of her plumage is brought out very nicely in the light you waited for.

[ajsmith]

Frank,
Thanks for commenting. When I was taking the photos, I was concentrating on the light and trying to get a photo when the duck was lit well by the sunlight. It was a bit windy and the ducks were moving around a lot so I knew there were ripples, but didn't know I captured the rings until I saw it on the computer. Usually it's the male mallard that makes a beautiful picture, but this photo of the lady mallard stood out among all the photos I took.

[jprzybyla]

Very nice image Ali, as others have commented the ripples add much to the image. Regarding capturing geese in flight, make sure your shutter speed is high enough. I prefer 1/2500 for tack sharp images, I also use Nikon's continuous focus with Auto ISO. Some would swear by spot metering but I prefer Matrix Metering adjusting the exposure with the EV button and wheel as experience has taught me. Canadian Geese will be difficult because of both white and black colors, I would expose for the white and adjust the exposure in post processing. Another thing to remember, the farther away you can lock focus and track the bird the better the focus will be but do not begin capturing images until it is close or you will fill the buffer and the camera will hesitate until it clears the buffer.

[FrankMi]

I'm with you on that Ali, a stunning image is often and uncommon combination of common elements that is rarely achieved without a lot of practice. You have certainly achieved results for your efforts here. After many years of trying I finally captured a sunrise 'green flash' but didn't realize that I had it until I saw it on the computer.

[ajsmith]

John,
Thank you.

[ajsmith]

Mark,
Thanks for commenting.

[ajsmith]

Joe,
Thanks for commenting and for your tips on how to photograph the Canadian Geese. Can't wait to go back out and try the suggestions everyone has offered here.