photo sharing and upload picture albums photo forums search pictures popular photos photography help login
Type your message and click Add Comment
It is best to login or register first but you may post as a guest.
Enter an optional name and contact email address. Name
Name Email
help private comment
Phil Douglis | all galleries >> Galleries >> Gallery Eighty: A city portrait – impressions of Mission Beach > Diving pelicans, Mission Beach, San Diego, California, 2010
previous | next
01-SEP-2010

Diving pelicans, Mission Beach, San Diego, California, 2010

The angle of the lead pelican, plunging into the Pacific in search of a fish dinner, echoes the diagonal thrust of the “Gods Rays” clouds in the background. I was able to freeze the tip of its beak just before it overlaps the horizon, to give the image much tension. I made dozens of images of silhouetted diving pelicans off Mission Beach just before sunset each evening during our two week visit, but this one best melded my choices in light, time, and space together to express the essence of the concept.

Panasonic Lumix DMC-G1
1/500s f/5.6 at 200.0mm iso100 hide exif
Full EXIF Info
Date/Time01-Sep-2010 18:43:09
MakePanasonic
ModelDMC-G1
Flash UsedNo
Focal Length200 mm
Exposure Time1/500 sec
Aperturef/5.6
ISO Equivalent100
Exposure Bias-0.66
White Balance
Metering Modemulti spot (3)
JPEG Quality
Exposure Programprogram (2)
Focus Distance

other sizes: small medium large original auto
share
Phil Douglis01-Oct-2010 19:52
Yes, I also see the second bird as not only an observer, but also standing guard while the other bird is diving.
Glad you see it as well.
Tim May01-Oct-2010 16:22
It is almost as if the smaller bird is providing protection for the other one.
Phil Douglis26-Sep-2010 00:29
Pterodactyl indeed! Thanks, Alister, for noting the resemblance. I agree with you -- pelicans are primitive, and this pair seems to come from somewhere in the late Jurassic period. As for that perseverance, my goal for this image went beyond just catching the dive itself. I wanted a layered image and was finally able to get it after many tries. The reflections of light on the water and the rays in the golden sky, plus the presence of a second pelican in exact alignment, complement each other. Then add the striking moment as the pelican's beak reaches for the horizon, but does not cross it, and everything comes together.
Available Light Images25-Sep-2010 22:14
I'm a big fan of Pelicans, there is something really primative about them, and your image here is timeless in that respect.. Pterodactyls, no less.... A great result from your perseverance..
Phil Douglis24-Sep-2010 17:14
That "timing" required much trial and error shooting. My camera does not capture the actual instant ("shutter lag"), so I have to shoot a fraction of a second before the instant I want to freeze. It took a lot of milk to make a little cream here, Rose. I am glad the image seems to grab your imagination, as it does my own.
sunlightpix24-Sep-2010 00:49
Wow! Fantastic timing! V
Type your message and click Add Comment
It is best to login or register first but you may post as a guest.
Enter an optional name and contact email address. Name
Name Email
help private comment