It was a dark, cloudy day at Delta Ponds, not a good day for trying for shots against the sky. I spotted a Peregrine Falcon high up in a tree some distance away, a shot I shouldn't even try. But not being one who has good sense I wanted to try anyway. By overexposing three stops, I still wasn't getting a good exposure and that just played havoc with noise levels. But I managed to get a presentable shot, well at least one I was willing to post. It's not great but it will have to do. I still haven't mastered shooting dark birds against a cloudy sky. Some day I will learn how to do it. I was so glad to see a Peregrine Falcon again at the Ponds that I was happy to get something.


Some added thoughts: I have been thinking about the photo and the conditions under which it was shot, as well as another point I was overlooking. The image was shot at ISO 12800! Now that makes a difference! Any noise that showed, and some did, was due to the high ISO and the processing I did. I lightened the shadows, which will increase noise levels, and processed it. After thinking about all of this, I have concluded that the result is actually amazingly good. I could not have done it with any of my other cameras. The D500 proved its capabilities, and I hadn't realized how much. It is amazing how we take things for granted now, that just a few short years ago were not possible. And back in film days, I could never have come close. I remember being pleased using ISO 1600 film, which was terribly grainy. Now we are reaching new highs, and only expect more! I am impressed!