Satin Bower bird (Australia)

Posted by Wayne Ellis on Sun Oct 26, 2003 7:57 pm

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Last night I projected this slide and it is a killer, you wouldn't know it looking at what's on the screen now. I am really frustrated I'm not able to reproduce the quality of the slide to the monitor.

Enough sulking, Satin Bowerbirds are really satin in colour, they light up in full sun, just like the cloth. Photographing them is hard work, one needs enough light for them to "shine" but not to much to blow out the Bg and surroundings.

Jock is the biggest, toughest and boldest of the males in this patch of Bunya Mountains.

Enjoy, comments and reposts welcome.

Comments and reposts welcome

Wayne Ellis

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by AlexC on Sun Oct 26, 2003 10:13 pm

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I feel for you, scanning is an art unto itself, this is indeed a wonderful bird with incredible colors, so sorry it does not show it's true magnificence as posted!!!, Still a wonderful bird with incredible and creative matting habits!!!

[b]Alex Calzadilla[/b]
[b]Miami, Florida[/b]
[b]NSN-0024[/b]
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by Bill Whala on Sun Oct 26, 2003 10:21 pm

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Wayne,

Looks like the harsh light was not working with you here. If it is possible to shoot this bird in a bright overcast condition the iridescence will show without such a high contrast to the dark plumage. Iridescent birds are among the toughest to get everything right.

The pose is nice and his "collection" is humorous.

Bill Whala

"Aves of similar plumage tend to converge with one another"

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by Alan Murphy on Mon Oct 27, 2003 1:11 am

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Wayne, Looks a little contrasty. But a great photo of a killer bird. I'd like to know if this is film or digital. Please include the equipment used and the techs if you have them, It really help to give better feedback, thanks.

Alan Murphy
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by Peterh on Mon Oct 27, 2003 2:40 am

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Wayne,

if I remember, I saw a better version of this shot a while ago. Indeed a bit harsh. The blues are over the top on my monitor. I'm in the same frustrating zone as you are

Peter

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by Heather Forcier on Mon Oct 27, 2003 11:14 am

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Scanning is tough. As much time as I've spent working with scanned slides, I have a really hard time with contrast, color casts, and other issues.

Looks like you've got great detail in the blacks. I'd love to hear more about these birds, what's the debris around it on the ground?

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by Jill on Mon Oct 27, 2003 9:49 pm

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Wayne, You've got a fabulous shot of this fellow!! The scan needs improvement, admittedly. Satin Bowerbirds are well known for their spectacular bowers (built by the males) decorated with just about any blue object possible. I especially adore Jock's blue china dish!!

Jill Rosenfield

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by Anthony Medici on Mon Oct 27, 2003 10:32 pm

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Keep working at it. The image definitely looks to be worth it. I don't scan but in the digital camera world, I would try lowering the contrast and then bring it back up to an acceptable level. Might work for scanning too.

Tony

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