Call of the Wild and a Flash ?

Posted by Gloria Hopkins on Sun Jan 11, 2004 10:08 pm

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This average, every day, over-photographed bird provided me with my most exciting bird photography experience to date, as I witnessed a behavior new to me.

When the bird extended his bill toward the sky, he'd bring it down slowly and when his head finally touched his back, he made the sound of a wolf howling, but very muffled. It was the most haunting, lonely, sorrowful sound I've ever heard in the wild. He was in full display and his mate was two trees over. If anyone has ever experienced this display, I would love to hear from you/about it.

Flash Question: This image was made with the 400 f/5.6 with 1.4tc, full frame ... -1/3 exposure compensation. I was told that my flash wouldn't reach the dark parts of its underbelly. Is this true? Would it have if I had a better-beamer? Many thanks....

Gloria

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by stevebein on Sun Jan 11, 2004 10:27 pm

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Gloria,
you did not say how far you were from the GBH. A beamer might have helped, but the underthrouat would have been more overexposed.
Perhaps someone else would be able to help more.

Steve Bein
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by Gloria Hopkins on Sun Jan 11, 2004 10:32 pm

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stevebein wrote:Gloria,
you did not say how far you were from the GBH. A beamer might have helped, but the underthrouat would have been more overexposed.
Perhaps someone else would be able to help more.

Thanks Steve: I have no idea how far I was from the bird. It was full frame +1.4, lol! That's how I measure.

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by wildstock on Sun Jan 11, 2004 10:54 pm

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Hi Gloria

I think the better beamer would have helped to bring some details from the shadow areas. It's a nice pose and looks sharp. If you see enough details in the shadows on the slide, you might be able to scan two separate files- one for the neutrals and highlights and a second one for the shadows to pull as much details as possible. Then you can merge these two in photoshop with a layer mask and spray-in the details you want. It was nice seeing you at Wako the other day. Good luck and keep shooting!

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by Wayne Nicholas on Sun Jan 11, 2004 11:04 pm

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Sweet pose. I am sure it's just the scan, but the gray appears to need a bit of contrast. Not a real nit, though. I have never been lucky enough to witness this display. Maybe this spring!

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by Alan Murphy on Sun Jan 11, 2004 11:17 pm

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Gloria, No man has ever heard this Howling, I think he was doing it for you

At 400MM and . 1.4, A flash with BB would have no problem putting enough light on this bird, IMO.

Sweet shot showing great behavior.

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by Arnie Berger on Mon Jan 12, 2004 4:41 am

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Gloria
Great shot, perfectly exposed.
I see that this guy is still trying to find a mate.

I will posting an image shot from a the same location with flash and BB and you can decide if this set up would have made a difference.

Arnold Berger
Powell Ohio

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by Jim Neely on Mon Jan 12, 2004 6:23 am

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This guy was trying to court you.

I rarely use a flash without the BB for birds. The camera/flash combination take care of the exposure problem if you have them set correctly.

jn

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by George DeCamp on Mon Jan 12, 2004 7:48 am

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This is my kind of image...VERY nice! Agree with the other folks on flash but in my opinion this stands on it's own.

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by Cliff Beittel on Mon Jan 12, 2004 8:46 am

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Very sweet image. I particularly like the absence of Brazilian Pepper (which infests most images from Venice Rookery). Yes, a Beamer would reach, though I don't mind the dark belly.

The behavior (skypointing) is very common at the right time of year (i.e., early). I've seen this at Venice in November and maybe December.

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by Jim Zipp on Mon Jan 12, 2004 8:53 am

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Hi Gloria,
I personally don't mind the shadow at all. It is only a small part of the image and looks natural to my eye. Nice behavior shot that is pleasing as well.

Jim Zipp
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by fredcor on Mon Jan 12, 2004 9:12 am

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Great behaviour shot. I think the exposure is fine considering the direction of main light source.

I was told that a Beamer would reach about 60ft at about f5.6.

Frederick Lat Correa

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by Alan Melle on Mon Jan 12, 2004 10:04 am

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Very nice! Good posture by the bird and a nice composition. Would love to hear that "howl" sound.

Alan Melle
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by E.J. Peiker on Mon Jan 12, 2004 11:25 am

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Without knowing the distance to the subject, its hard to tell whether or not the flash would reach - a beamer would definitely extend the range dramatically. You would be surprised by how far the larger Canon flash units can throw light with a beamer.

Its a very cool shot!

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by Safariguy on Mon Jan 12, 2004 11:51 am

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Even if a BB would throw more light at it, I think it is better as it is...very moody. Perhaps it is the howloing story that adds to the drama....

Cheers,

Jeff
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by Alexandre Vaz on Mon Jan 12, 2004 1:31 pm

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Nice to see you posting around here Gloria.
I like the pose but I think the image would benefit from adding a little contrast.

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by sjn on Mon Jan 12, 2004 5:15 pm

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This is courtship behavior of the male. He will start with his head really low and stretch the neck as high as it'll go. The males do this when looking for a new mate or to get the current mate to come to the nest. There are a ton of different mating/courting behavior rituals the GBH goes through - it's really interesting to watch.

Scott

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