Mike Cohen
July 2026 - Kildeer in Flight
Original
About the Image(s)
Killdeer are not uncommon but not usually in the places I generally haunt. I ran into a pair with one small chick which gave me some shots I liked. This I believe is the male, based only upon its habit of leaving Mom and chick for long stretches of time and just coming back to visit. As you can see, I cropped, lightened up the bird a bit, added some saturation to the bird and a bit of texture. I applied Topaz denoise and NIK Color Effects, adding a touch of warmth to the bird, a bit of Clearview and a tiny amount of detail enhancement to the head. I knocked down some of highlights of the background and applied a custom vignette to finish it off. Sony a1ii, 400mm lens, 1/5000, f/5, ISO 1600.
11 comments posted
I love the eyes of killdeer. They are so striking, and that orange ring around the eye just pops. What I find interesting in this photo is the of the feathers. Was there more going on with the tail feathers? Was he distracting you from the nest? I'm very curious about that since I read that they do use some distracting techniques to keep you away from the nest. I love that you caught him vocalizing, with the beak open. The crop and sharpening were used effectively to draw our attention to the bird. I know there are bright spots in the water, but that is part of the atmosphere you are capturing and they don't bother me. Others may disagree. Good job, Mike. Posted: 07/02/2026 21:46:40
I keep trying to type a particular word for what is happening with the tail feathers. It starts with a C and ends with an L but it is triggering something and it keeps getting blanked out. So let me say the I find the shape of the tail feathers interesting. Hope that passes! Also, I didn't notice the reflection at first in the lower center right. It's just a partial, so I don't know that it adds much. Posted: 07/03/2026 01:34:37
Hi Tracy. Nice to "meet" you. It's that ing feather that attracted me to this image but I was on the fence as to whether it was distracting or not. I believe it had to do with the wind as these guys aren't as concerning about taking off into the wind as most birds. This is the male who was just relocating to another area on the mud flat to search for food. The female and single chick were roaming the same area but only occassionally interacted with one anther. I know what you mean about Killdeer and other birds faking a broken wing to lure a perceived danger away from a nest but that wasn't the case here. This took place at an urban nature preserve, Peaceful Waters, where the birds are quite acclimated and weren't paying any attention to the people.
Posted: 07/06/2026 10:16:48
Posted: 07/06/2026 10:16:48
Interesting. The shape of the feathers is what makes it stand out, I'd say. Makes you wonder anyway. Posted: 07/07/2026 20:46:05
Beautiful capture of the Killdeer taking flight. I like the position of the wings, the beak open and it looks like water dripping from the feet. That ed feather is a unique addition and I don't find it at all distracting, in fact I wonder if he slept wrong and it's just a bad feather day. I didn't see it at first but once I saw the tip of the wing reflected in the water my eye keeps going there. I'm wondering if a pano crop would work cropping up from the bottom to remove some of the dark area and the bit of reflection. Just a thought. Posted: 07/13/2026 02:46:52
That bothers me a bit too Pamela. A tight crop might work but may look to close at the bottom. If this was something I was going to print I would probably just clone the water and vegetation over the reflection. Posted: 07/13/2026 09:05:59
Wonderful action shot. I love that ed rear feather. His piercing eye and open beak suggest he is in a hurry and telling everyone to get out of his way. The partial reflection of the wing feathers is a nice bonus. I have seen kildeer in open fields, but this is the first time I have seen one over water. It looks like he dipped his feet in. Posted: 07/16/2026 17:12:35
I like the bit of wing reflection in the water, it's another interesting feature that also provides perspective on how close the bird is to the water. The dark, blurry algae in the lower left corner might be cropped slightly, although it too provides perspective. Killdeers have the best orange eye-ring. They always look worried to me. I enjoy this image, much to discuss with the y tail feathers. Posted: 07/16/2026 20:37:31
Nice capture of the Kildeer in flight. It's very sharp as usual and the eye is life-like. We have plenty of Kildeer where I live and they are always hanging out in places that don't exacly make good backgrounds - you know, on the gravel in vacant lot, etc. So good job with the water in the background. You might consider cropping from the bottom to eliminate the messy stuff and the partial reflection. Of course that wold result in a panoramic presentation, but I still think it might work. Posted: 07/17/2026 18:51:00
Thanks for all the feedback. Here's one I cropped, as suggested. I like it better. Posted: 07/17/2026 20:38:17
Mike excellent job as usual. I much prefer your second edit with the wing tip feathers cropped out as I felt they were distracting. My other thought on this image was you have a basically brown bird and wings and a very dark background of water. You might try to lighten the water a bit to give the Killdeer a little more pop. Posted: 07/18/2026 20:06:57