Royal Tern Skimming Off South Beach

© Michael S. Lazarus

Royal Tern Skimming Off South Beach

Uploaded: March 12, 2008

Description

f/10.0, 1/2500, 70-300mmVR@300mm, DSC_9626, 8:50AM, ISO400, ExpBias-.033

I captured this Royal Tern just after he took-off from MIami's South Beach and headed into the morning sun to hunt for some breakfast. Upon close inspection you can see the point at which he probed the water's surface and the nice trail of spray behind him as a result. I slightly cropped the image to improve the composition. Enjoy!

Exif: F Number: 10, Exposure Bias Value: -0.33, ExposureTime: 1/2500 seconds, Flash: did not fire., ISO: 400, White balance: Auto white balance, FocalLength: 300.00 mm, Model: NIKON D40

Comments

Eivor Kuchta March 12, 2008

Great job on this one, Michael! You caught the reflections on the water so well, as you did the flying tern. A challenging situation, which you handled very well. It looks like he's getting some breakfast. #875748

isabel C. Zepeda level-classic March 12, 2008

Michael.
Another grate photo,how close wore you?
This one is real nice.
YSA #5634309

Sherry McClead March 13, 2008

Great capture... the timing is perfect and love the water trail! #5636989

Aimee C. Eisaman March 13, 2008

A perfect balance between the sunlight splashing on the waves and the rich colors of the bird. You did a wonderful job an this Michael! #5637698

Michael S. Lazarus March 14, 2008

Thank you Eivor, Isabel, Sherry and Aimee for your comments on this image. I value them tremendously!

To answer your question Isabel, I was standing right near the waterline when this tern flew off from his group to make a short round trip out in the surf (I think for a snack). Maybe he was just stretching or getting bored as well, I don't know. Every so often while I'm shooting the group, one will just suddenly take-off for one of these quick flights and return moments later to nearly the same spot. I would guess he was about 50 - 100 feet from the shore when I took this. He was flying rather quickly and when I'm looking through the viewfinder I tend to loose my sense of distance. Keep in mind that this photo has been cropped as well. #5641787


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