20110721

Mute Swan cygnet (Cygnus olor)

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I was shooting wildlife on a creek near Cley in North Norfolk yesterday when a group of cygnets drifted into view, escorted by their devoted parents. Cygnets – like so many young birds – are incalculably cute and so many shots opened up of the group together on the water. I could have filled an entire memory card, but I held back because I was looking for something else. I wasn't sure what, but the colours cast by the grey sky overhead lent the scene a surprisingly cold and quiet ambience. So I lay down, almost in the water, and waited for this one shot – a solitary cygnet, head down and aligned with my lens in perfect symmetry. I would, of course, have preferred the water to have been dead calm, providing a mirror-like reflection, but I'm still pleased with the shot, which I think has a certain quiet serenity.

Canon 1Ds MkII, Canon 100-400mm IS USM lens, 1/1,300 sec, f/5.6, 400mm at ISO 400
Posted by at 5:27 pm

6 comments:

  1. Anonymous21 July 2011 at 17:56

    It IS perfect Tim, the water movement adds to the softness of the bird. I really like it, well worth waiting for.

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  2. TexWisGirl21 July 2011 at 17:57

    oh what an adorable little serious face...

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  3. Warren Baker21 July 2011 at 19:16

    You did well there Tim, it's always worth the extra effort to get down to the subjects level. Nice one :-)

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  4. Juliana21 July 2011 at 20:51

    I agree with texwisgirl - so serious cute baby-swan)

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  5. Roy22 July 2011 at 00:54

    Very special shot Tim, great "bokeh" and absolutely head on.

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  6. JRandSue23 July 2011 at 17:23

    What a cute little thing.
    John.

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