{"id":1897,"date":"2011-02-14T07:06:27","date_gmt":"2011-02-14T12:06:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sipotd.wordpress.com\/2011\/02\/14\/2142011-snowy-happy-valentines-day\/"},"modified":"2011-02-14T07:06:27","modified_gmt":"2011-02-14T12:06:27","slug":"2142011-snowy-happy-valentines-day","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/psnp.info\/p4td_\/?p=1897","title":{"rendered":"2\/14\/2011: Snowy! Happy Valentines Day"},"content":{"rendered":"

<\/a><\/p>\n

Okay, so this shot of a Snowy Egret taken at Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge has nothing at all to do with Valentines Day\u2026except maybe the very beginnings of breeding plumage in the bird\u2026but that is a real stretch. Still, Happy Valentines Day! <\/p>\n

This was taken at the same pool by the restrooms on Blackpoint drive that yielded the Anhinga<\/a>, the Green Heron<\/a>, and the Alligator<\/a>. Not bad for a pool only about seven car lengths long and maybe one and half wide. <\/p>\n

As always, the trick with a Snowy Egret in the sun is to get the exposure right. I have played with Exposure Compensation often enough to know that, on a shot like this, where the bird fills a good deal of the frame, you are often better off just letting the auto exposure do it\u2019s thing. A touch of Recovery in Lightroom might be needed for the highlights, but then at least the background does not go way dark.<\/p>\n

I worked this bird for 15 minutes or so, as it moved around the pool. Here is alternative shot framed against the water, and cropped from the top for composition.<\/p>\n

<\/a><\/p>\n

Canon SD4000IS behind the 15-56x Vario Eyepiece on the ZEISS DiaScope 65FL spotting scope. About 1200mm equivalent field of view. 1) 1\/600 @ ISO 125. 2) 1\/800th @ ISO 200. Programmed auto.<\/p>\n

Processed for clarity and sharpness in Lightroom.<\/p>\n

Share this:<\/h3>