The Call of the Ptarmigan

Posted by Tim Grams on Wed Mar 31, 2004 10:03 am

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This willow ptarmigan just spoke up once for me. Unfortunately I had the camera aligned for a vertical and chopped off its tail. With mating season just starting up here in AK, it will soon be much easier to catch another bird calling.

Tim
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by Brian L. Zwiebel on Wed Mar 31, 2004 10:07 am

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Killer exposure and love the calling posture. As noted, the horizontal frame would have worked better here. I do wish for a bit stronger catch light in the eye.

BZ

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by fredcor on Wed Mar 31, 2004 10:21 am

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Yes, I do miss the tail, but, I'll give you 95%

for exposure, content & capture. Wonderful bird and a very striking image.

Frederick Lat Correa

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by DC on Wed Mar 31, 2004 10:27 am

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Superb shot Tim, you nailed the techs.

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by Alan Murphy on Wed Mar 31, 2004 10:38 am

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Tim, this is a powerful image with great mood and action. Awesome exposure. Wish for the tail.

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by Yanni on Wed Mar 31, 2004 10:50 am

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This is amazing. I don't mind it being a vertical like that. What a beatiful image. Outstanding exposure and lighting. Thank you for sharing.

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by walkinman on Wed Mar 31, 2004 11:08 am

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Hey Tim,

I think that was the original working title of London's book, "The Call Of The Ptarmigan", before the publishers changed it.

Really nice .. the light is great, and the subject gorgeous. Excellent job timing the shot. I need to go after these guys one winter up there. Where was this taken?

Cheers

Carl

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by Noel on Wed Mar 31, 2004 11:23 am

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Does this image absolutely DEFINE the word "pristine" or what? Excellent. Love the slant, the crystals, heck even the background is white. Wow.

-Noel

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by Bill Whala on Wed Mar 31, 2004 11:28 am

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The calling pose more than makes up for any shortcomings. This is awesome!!

Bill Whala

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by AlexC on Wed Mar 31, 2004 1:12 pm

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Tim, looks like a protruding ice sculpture, excellent exposure and detail, love the wintry feel here as well, a small USM halo is visible around his beak!! Congrats!!

[b]Alex Calzadilla[/b]
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by Carol Clarke on Wed Mar 31, 2004 1:19 pm

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What's not to like about this one Tim!! The tail doesn't matter a darn, everything is so beautiful in this image and I love everything about it! Stunning!!

Carol Clarke
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by E.J. Peiker on Wed Mar 31, 2004 4:25 pm

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Regardless of the tail, this is a cool photo!

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by Jim Urbach on Wed Mar 31, 2004 8:12 pm

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Great capture. I hope you get the tail next time.

Jim

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by Peter Wallack on Thu Apr 01, 2004 6:35 am

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Top notch artistic and technical work. Riveting behavior!!!

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by Harvey Edelman on Thu Apr 01, 2004 7:15 am

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Nice shot. Good techs. The minor nits have already been mentioned.

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by Tim Grams on Thu Apr 01, 2004 9:51 am

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Thanks for all of the comments!

Carl- This was taken in Power Line Pass, the same area where we went hiking. It was right along the trail leading down to the stream that we crossed. Late March through late April is the best time to chase ptarmigan up here. Its generally feast or famine- last night I was out for 2 1/2 hours on snowshoes and didn't see or hear a single bird despite seeing fresh tracks and being in prime habitat. On other trips I've seen 50+ birds with far less walking.

Tim
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by Juli Wilcox on Sat Apr 03, 2004 1:26 am

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The first words that came to mind are, "Awesome exposure." I see Alan thought the same thing. Wow! I'm not sure, but I think a crop on the Left and top would help me forget the missing tail. The total effect of white bird in white snow with crystals would still work.

[b]Juli Wilcox[/b]
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