BAIRD'S SANDPIPER - SHATTERED PEACE


Posted by James McIntyre on Thu Sep 04, 2003 4:39 pm

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Title: BAIRD'S SANDPIPER - SHATTERED PEACE
Species: Baird's Sandpiper (Calidris bairdii)
Photographer: James McIntyre
Date: September 10, 2001
Location: Utah County, UT
Equipment: Canon EOS-1VHS; EF 600 mm f/4L IS USM + 2.0x I TE; Fuji Provia 100F
Evaluative Metering: +1/3

Late on a warm September afternoon, I photographed this juvenile Baird's Sandpiper on the shore of Utah Lake. It was feeding serenely, resting and gaining strength during its long journey southward - from its birthplace in the high Arctic to its winter home in South America. As sunset approached about 7 p.m., I left quietly without ever flushing the bird. At that peaceful moment neither of us realized that, just 12 hours later, our world would change forever.

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by Mike Danzenbaker on Thu Sep 04, 2003 5:25 pm
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Luckily for the sandpiper, what happened 12 hours later didn't change its world at all.

I'm not sure I've ever seen a Baird's in water.

My only thought to improve this one would be for the bird to be a bit less centered, but that's a matter of taste.
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by James McIntyre on Thu Sep 04, 2003 6:55 pm
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Mike:

I think you may be underestimating the effect of 9/11 on the birds. If we did not have to spend hundreds of billions of dollars fighting terrorism, as we are currently doing, some of that money might well go into preserving natural habitat, which is becoming increasingly threatened. This is particularly true in South America. That was my point.

I appreciate your point about placement of the bird. But this bird was standing, not moving. I tried to place its head according to the rule of thirds, as closely as possible. Chacun a son gout.

Jim
 

by Sandy Mossberg on Thu Sep 04, 2003 7:05 pm
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James, an interesting story. Thanks.

The shot is lovely. I believe that 1/3 less EV would have been ideal.
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by E.J. Peiker on Thu Sep 04, 2003 7:19 pm
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Simple, clean and very nice!
 

by Bob Ettinger on Thu Sep 04, 2003 7:24 pm
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James,

Nice one but I agree with Sandy about a little less exposure.
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by Lillian Roberts on Thu Sep 04, 2003 7:55 pm
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Jim, Nice bird and nice commentary. I don't know whether it's a bit overexposed or you just need to tweak the Levels etc, but it could stand some work to make it "pop" a bit. The bird of course is perfectly in focus and the pose follows all the usual guidelines.

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by Bruce Sherman on Thu Sep 04, 2003 7:57 pm
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James,
Nice catch. I too think that a slightly reduced exposure would really help.
 

by Steve Sage on Thu Sep 04, 2003 8:11 pm
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Certainly a bird for thought. I don't think I'd considered all those implications of 9/11.

While I can't judge your slide exposure my info says the levels is off (about 35) on the left slider. Could partly be my monitor though but the outline on the scan is true black while the darks in the image are grey.

A very nice sandpiper image Jim!
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by Paul Fusco on Thu Sep 04, 2003 8:40 pm
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James -

Nice photo. As mentioned it looks a little hot. Not sure if its the exposure or the scan.

I fail to see the connection of this bird, or any bird, to the events of 9/11 (except for the pigeons that were on the towers). I also don't believe that our president would be funneling any of the billions spent on fighting terrorism toward protecting wildlife habitat in the U.S. or in South America.

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by Greg Downing on Thu Sep 04, 2003 9:09 pm
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James, this is a very nice image and I agree about the exposure but also detect a bit of a cyan cast . At first I had no idea what you were talking about until I started to read the other comments and then looked at the date of the image, but I am sure that this will always be a memorable and special image for you.

To all: Let's not let this get off track and into a political debate. Thanks!
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by Alan Murphy on Thu Sep 04, 2003 9:26 pm
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James, A beautiful photo. It looks a little washed out to me.
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by Mike Wilson on Fri Sep 05, 2003 3:56 am
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Excellent shot of a species I haven't seen posted. It just needs a boost in contrast to make it pop.
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by Anthony Medici on Fri Sep 05, 2003 6:37 pm
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As presented, the shadows are too weak leaving the image with little contrast. Other than that, I like this.
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by Heather Forcier on Fri Sep 05, 2003 8:28 pm
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Jim,

I suspect any nits I would have are likely caused from the scanning process, and nothing that hasn't been noted already. This appears to be a great shot of a Baird's. I did get one one on the east coast once but only because I had two seasoned birders with me, otherwise I would never have been able to distinguish it from the other shorbirds. The image appears to be quite sharp, too.
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by Jim Probst on Sun Sep 07, 2003 2:27 am
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James,

Nice detail, and beautiful water! Good work!
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