Sherry Icardi
February 2025 - Forster Tern with Breakfast
About the Image(s)
These are frequent visitors to the wetlands, but come for a morning of feeding for a couple of days then disappear for days. Sometimes they just move on and don't come back til next year. But....they are addictive... So I'm usually glad to see them go! This visit was last week and they were here for 2 days and 2,000 images later ! they are fast, unpredictable , and intent on fishing. They dive head first and rarely can you get them with the evidence of success in their beak. This is probably the first visible one I've ever gotten. And even got a catchlight, which is also unusual because they are very early birds, often starting before the sun is up.
Taken On Sony A1 with 300 f/2.8 and 1.4Teleconverter
1/3000 sec
f 4.0
ISO 250
7 comments posted
That's great Sherry! I see them all the time in the lake behind my house. As you say, they are both lightening fast and unpredictable in their movements. Nice catch getting him with a fish. Love the water droplets too. I use the a1 with the 200-600 but am looking at the 300. Have read great things and your post may have convinced me. Posted: 02/04/2025 03:52:42
Hi Sherry,
I love the details in the feathers and even the fish, the catchlight in the eye, the water droplets and the composition. I have tried capturing these birds while fishing with no results. So I appreciate this image even more.
Posted: 02/05/2025 18:25:03
I love the details in the feathers and even the fish, the catchlight in the eye, the water droplets and the composition. I have tried capturing these birds while fishing with no results. So I appreciate this image even more.
Posted: 02/05/2025 18:25:03
I can't think of a thing to add to what's already been said.
Great catch. With 2000 I guess you had a lot to choose from. How patient of you to go through every one. Posted: 02/08/2025 23:20:46
Great catch. With 2000 I guess you had a lot to choose from. How patient of you to go through every one. Posted: 02/08/2025 23:20:46
Leslie.....Out of all of them...most were easy decisions....blurry and too dark were TOSS! I got way more than I thought I had, given my experiences prior to this day. They are pretty close in demeanor to the Belted Kingfisher ....my nemesis! Posted: 02/13/2025 17:17:02
Very nice, Sherry. I agree with the other comments. Great exposure, lots of crisp detail (including the water droplets). The tern stands out well against the dark background. One very minor suggestion would be to add a tad of exposure to the eye area. Not much, just a little to make it more discernible. Overall, an excellent image, and I agree that you must have a great deal of patience! Posted: 02/11/2025 19:52:37
These birds are almost impossible to get the eye to stand out. And in this case I have already lightened it.....there is also the added challenge that his protective eyelid is still partially covering his eye. I will go back and see if that is possible, but I'm not optimistic. Also my mistake, I realized I did not discuss processing in the description. I had just gotten this image a few days before everyone had started sending images. And of course here in South Florida we are at peak nesting season, so I am out shooting almost daily. Posted: 02/13/2025 17:23:04
I didn't change the angle, it just grew that way. I've seen many stinkhorns, but this was my first "veiled".
Look forward to your new nesting posts. Posted: 02/13/2025 21:28:18
Look forward to your new nesting posts. Posted: 02/13/2025 21:28:18