Lori Azevedo
March 2025 - Bubbles the Duck
Original
About the Image(s)
My camera club shot photos together at a wildlife refuge last month. However we forgot to inform the ducks and other foul that they were to perform for us. Mostly the ducks were quiet and lazy.
I did capture this one blowing bubbles while raising up to the surface. I was using my Nikon D850 camera. The ISO was set at 800 with aperture at 5.3. The exposure time was 1/3200 sec. Is it perfect for close up photography...maybe not. However, my focal length was 600. So the lens helped me get closer.
6 comments posted
Lori - I think your lens got exactly what you needed. The duck is lovely, especially with all the bubbles around him. That red eye is perfect. For me, I would like to see a little cropped from behind the duck, so he looks like he is swimming into the scene insteaed of in the middle. I don't think his brown back will suffer from that, because it is not the main subect of interest. Next, I would definitely tone down that bright bachground, and brighten up the bottom half of the foreground water. There needs to be a little more evening light on the front half of his face and neck (use Shadows/Highligts), and the sticks coming out of the water behind him should be cloned out. Of course, that eliminates the possibility of using this as a Nature competition shot. Posted: 03/07/2025 12:19:55
Thank you for editing my image. I think you did a good job with it. Posted: 03/13/2025 11:50:18
Lori, your duck is an American Coot, which is a shore bird that frequently hangs with ducks, although is it is not a duck. It also appears to have some kind of entanglement around its beak, possibly fishing line. As for your image, I like the bubbles, especially the one that's sitting on top of its head. I would drop the highlights a bit on his beak as it appears to be a bit blown out. I like Melissa's crop but the added highlights to its beak just further blows it out and becomes void of any detail. Removing the reflection of the branch is a good idea. Nice capture. Posted: 03/11/2025 14:55:26
American Coot. The name completely slipped my mind, and I was too lazy to look it up :-)
There were no finishing lines in the wildlife refuge. It was reeds from the water.
Thousands of foul in the water and they were all just sitting there doing nothing. giggles Posted: 03/13/2025 11:53:13
There were no finishing lines in the wildlife refuge. It was reeds from the water.
Thousands of foul in the water and they were all just sitting there doing nothing. giggles Posted: 03/13/2025 11:53:13
Hi Lori,
I agree that this is an American Coot and think that Melissa's crop works well for me.
Also the suggestion to tone down the highlights makes good sense to me. Personally, the presence of the reeds adds to the realism for me. Thanks for sharing this one! Posted: 03/24/2025 21:01:58
I agree that this is an American Coot and think that Melissa's crop works well for me.
Also the suggestion to tone down the highlights makes good sense to me. Personally, the presence of the reeds adds to the realism for me. Thanks for sharing this one! Posted: 03/24/2025 21:01:58
As an avid birder I love your Coot. I also like how Melissa's crop and removing the sticks. Very nice! Posted: 03/25/2025 18:27:29