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Alphabet soup II. Letter S for “Symmetry"

Challenge #173 in the Miscellaneous ideas... 2020 is Alphabet Soup series. Hosted by barb_s.

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This week the challenge is to illustrate the word symmetry.

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800 votes

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Nature's Symmetry

by Stevie Boy Blue

1^st place

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Camera:	Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ150
Lens:
Submitted:	Monday, 16th November, 2020 13:48 (GMT)
Taken:	Saturday, 2nd June, 2012
Focal length:	63 mm
Shutter speed:	1/200 sec
Aperture:	F3.3
ISO:	125
Notes:
Views:	278
Galleries:	View this photo in Stevie Boy Blue's gallery

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Entry comments

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barb_s

Nicely done. I didn't really expect the dots in the feathers to end up being so symmetrical, but you have it! Congratulations on a worthy winner!

1 month agopermalink

Stevie Boy Blue

Thank you, Barb. Yes, it's surprising just how symmetrically aligned the peacock's display is when both the viewer and subject are completely square on to each other. Ultimately, so much of what we take for granted is pretty wondrous when we look and examine more closely. :-)
Thank you for the congratulations and for hosting these challenges. You do a wonderful job, albeit a thankless one in many cases. Thanks again, :-)

1 month agopermalink

Albert Valentino

Excellent

1 month agopermalink

Stevie Boy Blue

Thank you, Albert. :-)

1 month agopermalink

Bsivad2020

Excellent shot! I can attest how difficult this is to pull off. Male peacocks can be skittish if you get too close. Here's my version:

https://flic.kr/p/2jgE8xh

1 month agopermalink

Stevie Boy Blue

Thank you.
Yes, Peacocks, which are all male (females are Peahens), can indeed be skittish when we get too close to them. They can also be very aggressive; to the point they may attempt to peck and/or scratch us, especially when they’re in the throes of attracting a mate and are competing with other males for the same hen.
I’d therefore advise a cautionary approach to any photographer unsure of how they’ll be tolerated by the birds, which should soon let you know just how close you can get whilst they’re displaying. The first sign of intolerance should see a Peacock charge toward you, usually stopping short if you stand your ground. It may act in this way 2 or 3 times before it strikes.
Ignore these warnings at your own peril. Where possible, keep around 15ft of space between you and the displaying bird, at least until both you and it feel comfortable enough to move closer, just not too close! Ouch! ;-)
Thanks for the link to your nice example. Well done.
Cheers…

1 month agopermalink

G Gordon MacDonald

This is just exceptional. The symmetry is so close to absolute perfection. When I was voting, my first impression was that it was a photo that had been flipped had 2 identical sides merged. When I got down to see the minor variations at the bottoms of the feathers on each side, I finally realized what an outstanding shot this is. You have as much skill as you have patience. Congratulations.

2 months agopermalink

Stevie Boy Blue

Thank you for your very kind words, Gordon. Lovely of you to post.

But I’m now imagining how long it might take for me to convincingly hide the centre join in any half-flipped composite whilst also ensuring every feather tassel and eye looked slightly different from the one directly opposite, save to mention all other minor intricacies occurring in the amazing plumage.

Overall, that may well be beyond my skill set. So I’m pleased you noticed that in fact, the image is as it was taken on the day, albeit a crop from a larger one that looks even nicer at full size.

I felt lucky and pleased to have got 3 hits from maybe 1200 attempts over 3 or 4 sessions chasing this specific 'head-on' pose. But in only one is the bird’s head and breast centrally aligned with the back feathers; the other two, including this one were slightly off to one side but still fairly symmetrical.

Thank you again for the complements. I really appreciate your input. :-)

Cheers and all the best to ya...

2 months agopermalink

Paul Lazanov

Amazingly beautiful moment you caught! 10/10!

2 months agopermalink

Stevie Boy Blue

Thank you very much, Paul.
I really appreciate your view of my effort. Nice of you to post.
Cheers and all the best…

2 months agopermalink

Sue Anne Rush

Beautiful picture of the peacock - Congratulations :)

2 months agopermalink

Stevie Boy Blue

Thank you, Sue Anne.

You’re very kind to have left a comment. I’m very pleased that you liked my photo. :-)

Cheers

2 months agopermalink

LauraJ

This was just priceless how you did it, just absolutely loved it and gave you 5 stars for it. So happy for you that you won! It earned it!

2 months agopermalink

Stevie Boy Blue

Thank you, LauraJ.

I appreciate the time everyone takes to set up, enter and vote in these challenges. I’m also grateful for any votes I receive, especially when my efforts are deemed worthy of top marks by some viewers. It’s very kind of you to have given my shot five stars. :-)

As you may imagine, Peacocks can be quite aggressive, making them tricky subjects to photograph at close range, like here. It’s also a very patience-testing task to obtain shots where the bird’s full-blown display is symmetrically square on to the lens and the head is central, as is almost the case in my example. ;-)

I’d imagined the shot I was after long before I was faced with the opportunity to capture it, and I recall that it took me 3 or 4 sessions and countless attempts before I was eventually rewarded for my perseverance. Some folks think wildlife photography is easy, but that’s usually before they’ve seriously given the genre a try or gained any image that’s truly worthy of keeping. :-)

Cheers

2 months agopermalink


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