Sylvia Bacon
September 2023 - “Great Egret’s Nest”
Original
About the Image(s)
Every spring Magnolia Gardens’ Audubon Swamp Gardens in Charleston, SC is filled with nesting Great Blue Herons, Great Egrets and other large coastal birds in the sanctuary’s rookery. (Along with native alligators, snakes, other creatures plus many beautiful plants!) Boardwalks over the swamp area allows spectators to enjoy nature at her best.
Edited in Adobe Camera Raw and Photoshop. In ACR the original was enhanced, then adjustment sliders were used before masking the background to darken it. Moved into PS for dodging, burning, sharpening and then cropped.
Nikon D50, Nikon Lens 70-300 mm, Focal length 260.0 mm, Exposure 1/320, F/5.6, ISO 200, Manual; Pattern metering.
8 comments posted
(Groups 21 & 48 & 71)
Sylvia, very nice image of an egret family. Love the sharpness of the image. Wish you could see the eyes a little better but I know sometimes it is tough with bird photography. The adult is somewhat hot and lacks detail on its back and head but still a well executed image. Posted: 09/13/2023 07:56:40
Tom, thank you. I will go back to see if I can recover some details on the bird's back and head. Unfortunate, this was shot at mid-day under the bright sun since I was participating in our photography club outing at the time.™ Posted: 09/17/2023 14:10:34
Hi Sylvia, you have taken a wonderful family moment. I really like the fluffy feathers of the chicks and the fact that the adult is still showing its season feathers too. Your crop is working well and the detail in the white feathers is quite reasonable, I suggest you to recover detail in the highlights if it is possible. Posted: 09/13/2023 16:53:59
Thank you Maria, I feel fortunate the sunlight reflected off of the seasonal feathers on the adult plus the chicks' bodies. I will work further on the blown out parts on the adult and hopefully bring out more details. Posted: 09/17/2023 14:18:51
Hi Sylvia. Springtime at the Magnolia Swamp is a real treat. I have photographed there often. This is a nice family shot of these guys. Whit birds are so easy to overexpose and lose detail, but I think this is acceptable. Give it a shot, you may be able to recover a little detail. Posted: 09/13/2023 19:21:52
Richard, thank you for sharing your thoughts. I bet you have a lot of great bird pictures from Magnolia Swamp. This was taken a few years ago before the swamp went into a decline but I hear it has recently come back. I am looking forward to returning. Posted: 09/17/2023 14:25:20
Good capture with the two babies with their fuzzy feathers. Well cropped. As said above, see if you can recover some of the detail in the white. Posted: 09/16/2023 19:28:20
Many thanks, Marilyn! Posted: 09/17/2023 14:25:54