MOURNING DOVE CHICKS FIRST DAY OUT OF THE NEST

I had a wonderful surprise this morning as I sat down to breakfast. A

mother mourning dove was feeding her two chicks on my block wall.

I knew we had some chicks in a nest but had not yet seen them out.

Today was the day.

Mom put them behind the palm tree making it hard to get a clear shot

of them. I wanted to blur both the background and the palm frond in

front which I could not avoid. So I used a larger aperture opening. I

was using a 500mm lens hand held so I wanted a high shutter speed

to reduce my shake. I took about 20 shots before I got the shot I

wanted - where both chicks eye showed. The post processing

involved cropping, sharpening, contrast and color tone.

Enjoy. And if you have a chance please critique as I am always

trying to improve my photography. I will return the favor for all who

critique this shot.

Have fun shooting.

Nice shot Dave,  I think you did a nice job in softening the surrounding. TFS!

Thanks TmJ.

One can't help be captivated by this image.

The two birds surveying the world for the first time has been captured extremely well by you! Your patience and determination has certainly paid off!

Some people argue against explanatory text that accompany images, but I for the most part find it very helpful and in this case crucial in fully appreciating what I am seeing.

Compliments & Best Regards

Alf

Alf, thanks for your comment. I was wondering what people felt about explanations.

Hi Dave,

A wonderful Nature shot.

The Sigma zoom lens at 500mm performs best wide open (F/6.3).

The isolation of these two young birds is excellent.

I post to teach. Therefore, explanations are essential and I would not consider posting any image without posting additional information not found in the Technical Detail section.

Best Regards, Mike

Mike, since I am an ardent student, I feel it best to let potential teachers know what I was trying to do and what circumstances may be involved so as to get better feedback. Thanks for giving me your perspective on adding other info in post. I post to learn and to teach when I have something to give.

I hope your flooding gets under control soon and no serious damage was done to your place. I have relatives in FL and have watched them go through some pretty bad storms over the last 3 decades.