I like these two American Coot portraits that I took at my local pond two years ago. The snowy background on one and the gray in the other set off the coots.
American Coot with snowy background – Nikon D500, f7.1, 1/8000, ISO 1000, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light
The day these portraits were taken there had been a record breaking snow fall of 11.7 inches in the Salt Lake Valley. Thankfully I didn’t have to go far from home on dicey roads to take these coot images.
The last time I had been out to photograph birds prior to taking these coot photos the light had been terrible so I had raised my to ISO 1000. Normally in bright conditions I would have it set at ISO 500 or lower. That is why my shutter speed was so high in these images.
I liked the snow white background in this photo and how well the dark plumage of the coot and its red eye stood out. The melted snow droplets in front of its eye and the top of its head appealed to me too.
Close American Coot – Nikon D500, f6.3, 1/6400, ISO 1000, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light
As I recall, the gray background in this photo was created by ice in the shadow of shoreline vegetation behind the coot. Like the photo above, I like how well the American Coot stands out from the background in this image.
Yesterday morning after I published my post about “Missing Our Neighborhood Bald Eagle” the server my site is hosted on crashed which resulted in a prolonged outage. I’m sorry if you weren’t able to view that post yesterday. It was very frustrating trying to get the server back online. Thanks for your patience.
Life is good.
Mia
Click here to view more of my American Coot photos plus facts and information about this species.
The eyes of the coot are stunning! Great portraits Mia. Thanks.
Great shots! So easy to lose detail in those blacks and whites, but you nailed it! 🙂
Both portraits are stunning. I was very glad (and as you know relieved) to be able to finally acccess yesterday’s post.
Many thanks for the portraits of the Coot and Gadwell Drake. I had never seen this drake before. Truly regal pose.—Jeri Spann
Very, very special portrait shots, Mia.
Oh, to have the American Coots so close to take portrait shots must have been wonderful. I love coots & love these photos. Thank you!