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Macaw


Macaw
Photo Information
Copyright: Rob Nicholls (nixpix) Gold Star Critiquer/Silver Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 67 W: 26 N: 121] (444)
Genre: Animals
Medium: Color
Date Taken: 2005-04-11
Categories: Birds
Camera: Canon D60, Canon EF 28-70mm f2.8 USM
Photo Version: Original Version
Theme(s): Macaws, Intimate Portraits, Red Birds [view contributor(s)]
Date Submitted: 2005-07-29 3:57
Viewed: 14734
Favorites: 3 [view]
Points: 46
[Note Guidelines] Photographer's Note
I think this is a Scarlet Macau but any guidance is welcome. I first considered it might be a Red-and-green macau but eventually went with the former. I encountered him at the bird park at Kuranda near Cairns in Northern Queensland. Kuranda lies in the thick of rain forest region and offers a great range of attractions. It is important to note that this is not the native environment of this bird species.

I took the image at very close range with my 28-70 lens and cleaned up and sharpened the resulting image a little to improve its impact.

The Scarlet Macaw (Ara macao) is a large type of parrot that is found in the tropical rain forests of Central and South America, including Mexico, Guatemala, Belize, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, and Brazil. It lives in the canopy (the tree leaves) and emergent layer (the tops of the very highest trees) of the rainforest. Scarlet Macaws are an endangered species due to their capture as pets, and loss of habitat. These noisy, magnificent birds can fly at speeds up to 56 km per hour (35 mph), often flying in pairs or small flocks. In captivity, Scarlet Macaws have a life span of up to 80 years.

Anatomy: The Scarlet Macaw is about 35 inches (90 cm) long. The feathers are bright red with bits of yellow, orange and blue on the wings. The bill is very curved. The feet are zygodactylous; the 2 outer toes point backwards and grip in opposition to the 2 forward-pointing toes. Males and females are similar in appearance.

Diet: Scarlet Macaws eat fruit, seeds, and nuts. Like other parrots, they are seed predators; they destroy the seeds that they eat and do not disperse them. Some macaws are sometimes seen eating clay from river banks.

Eggs and Nests: Macaws nest in holes located high in deciduous trees. Females lay 2 plain white eggs in each clutch (a set of eggs laid at one time). Both parents incubate the eggs. The young stay with the parents for up to 2 years.

Information source : enchanted learning.com
TAZ, red45, Janice, dew77, Comandante, honza, christophe, carper, klemmg, electra, wallhalla15, coasties, ajcsousa, janhendrik, aido, marhowie has marked this note useful
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Critiques [Translate]

Wooow!
What a colours!!!!
You found something more colorful than butterflies!
Amazing!

Wowwwwwwwwwwwwww
What a lovely and great composition, nice detail and great clarity. You know parrot is my favorite bird; I like the parrot very much. And you take a great shot of the parrot. I think this shot is shot of the day. Congratulation for a beautiful and lovely shot, thanks for posting it. Well done. I keep a copy of your photo for me. Thanks.
Latif

  • Great 
  • red45 Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 2636 W: 74 N: 9091] (31094)
  • [2005-07-29 4:20]

Rob, perfect portrait of beautifull bird. Pose, sharpness, details, DOF - everything look great. No nits, superb job!

  • Great 
  • Janice Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 3277 W: 148 N: 6163] (18832)
  • [2005-07-29 4:25]

Stunning colours. What a beautiful bird, and so nicely captured by you Rob. Excellent sharp details and colours, it's a great portrait of this magnificent parrot. Well done.

  • Great 
  • dew77 Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 4432 W: 248 N: 4028] (13270)
  • [2005-07-29 4:31]

Hello Rob!
Wonderful capture.Clear details,vivid colors,3D effect,POV and composition are wonderful.
TFS...:-)

  • Great 
  • omnia Silver Star Critiquer [C: 34 W: 0 N: 0] (0)
  • [2005-07-29 4:55]

Spectacular - the detail is really impressive. Very vivid, and excellent composition.

Hey Rob,

What a fabulous photo. Awesome color man. Perfect.

Hello Rob!
What a nice portrait.Vivid colors,razor sharp details,framing and composition are perfect.Thanks for sharing.

  • Great 
  • honza Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Note Writer [C: 533 W: 0 N: 720] (4197)
  • [2005-07-29 6:42]

Very nice portrait of this beautiful Ara. Excellent colors and sharpness

Hi Rod
Great capture, details and colors
TFS
In a friendly way Christophe

  • Great 
  • carper Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 1973 W: 119 N: 2582] (8439)
  • [2005-07-29 10:57]

very nice one Rob,
It´s realy a beauty, fantastic photo, good colours, fantastic in pov, great frame, well I just like it a lot, very good job,
gr. Jaap

  • Great 
  • klemmg Gold Star Critiquer/Silver Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 302 W: 40 N: 484] (1719)
  • [2005-07-29 12:45]

Wow! Very clear, very sharp, so much detail (eye region, feathers,...)! The complementary colour combi makes the signal-red really stand out. Red is supposed to be a problem with some digital cameras. Well, not this one. Composition and pose is also excellent, with the curving/s-shaped neck/head. The eye naturally is an eyecatcher. The black frame with the narrow red line fits well with the picture. This is really wonderful. It's not as if I hadn't tried, but I really can't think of anything to improve. My first favourite!

Hi Rob,

wonderful Portrait of a Macaw. I like it very much.

Rob, this picture is super B. Excellent portrait, perfectly sharp, great colours as well. Well done.

  • Great 
  • TAZ Gold Star Critiquer/Silver Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 2241 W: 47 N: 3167] (10926)
  • [2005-07-30 4:27]

What a superb Macaw that you have well captured ! Composition, colors, details and sharpness are great ! Thanks for sharing Rob.

  • Great 
  • optic Gold Star Critiquer [C: 322 W: 0 N: 0] (0)
  • [2005-07-30 21:16]

WoW !
Fantastic shot Rob, splendid colours & clear details, very well composed you did a great work DOF & POV superb.
11/10 :-)

Regards,
Christian

Hello Rob

Top marks for this outstanding shot! Excellent POV, good crisp, clear sharp details, light is spot on and the subject looks full of attitude and charachter. Your presentaion is lovely. Very nice work. Congrats!

Very nice. Oustanding colors and details. beautiful shot.
Martin

What a great colors and details ... WOW.

Fantastic photo :)

Be well

António

Fantastic picture, Rob. Razorsharp, the focus is perfect, the DOF is as well, good BG, I cannot fault the picture in any way. The border is spot-on to complete this perfect picture. TFS.

  • Great 
  • livios Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 2150 W: 319 N: 4263] (16942)
  • [2005-08-23 16:39]

Rob, the vivid colors and the excellent sharpness are really amazing.

Great pov, composition, lighting and blurred bg.

Congratulations.

  • Great 
  • aido Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor [C: 1044 W: 156 N: 1218] (4046)
  • [2006-08-18 20:08]

Hi Rob,
I'm pretty sure this is a Scarlet Macaw. There are two sub species and it's hard to tell which one this is, because they're both scarlet but one subspecies, (Ara macao cyanoptera) has mostly blue feathers on it's wings and the other (Ara macao macao) has mostly green feathers on it's wings. I can see mostly blue so I'm guessing this belongs to cyanoptera. He's also a long way from home as the Scarlet Macaw originates from South and Central America.

It's a lovely shot, beautiful clear detail and vibrant colours. Nicely framed too and a nice pose with his head turned around. Great exposure too, not always easy with these birds. Excellent work.
Cheers,
Adrian

Excellent portrait Rob. The scarlet macaw has some dramatic color, very striking. Very good sharpness, detail, DOF, POV, pose, and comp with just the right space around the bird.
Very well done & have a Great Week!

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