Jerry Biddlecom
October 2026 - King Vulture
Original
About the Image(s)
Brevard County, Florida, is home to the Kennedy Space Center. While visiting the area several years ago I stopped by a small zoo not too far from the cape and came across what I think is a king vulture. I liked the colorful (if not all that cute) face and noted that it was displayed against a dark background. This turned out to be a bit of a challenge balancing out the light with the dark areas. The most activity in Camera Raw centered around balancing out the various light and shadow controls as well as the brightness and darkness sliders. After arranging the contrast and clarity I opened up into On1 FX to gain some sharpness. Taken with my Nikon D500 with 70 to 300 mm lens, hand held.
4 comments posted
I think this is a King vulture too - I've only seen them in a bird aviary (zoo) - so strange, but striking bird. Your viewpoint and lighting shows off its many colours and textures very well - there is great detail here. Nice diffused background too. Posted: 10/15/2026 21:14:29
You captured a very nice pose, the head turn really shows off all the wonderful colors and features of the face. I like the tight crop as well. The simple background sets it off well.
For my taste this is just a little too bright, especially the orange patch on the neck. I'd try bringing the exposure down about 0.2 on the slider and see what that does. I don't think you'd lose the detail you've worked to preserve with that.
I've seen these in Costa Rica, nice memories looking at this. Posted: 10/20/2026 23:41:27
For my taste this is just a little too bright, especially the orange patch on the neck. I'd try bringing the exposure down about 0.2 on the slider and see what that does. I don't think you'd lose the detail you've worked to preserve with that.
I've seen these in Costa Rica, nice memories looking at this. Posted: 10/20/2026 23:41:27
I agree, especially the yellow. Posted: 10/24/2026 15:34:02
Hi Jerry,
Great image of this king vulture in such a nice pose! I like that you experimented with the shadow and light controls, as they allow you to balance the lighting. You did a good job with the crop, too. Personally, though, I prefer the drama of the original image. Posted: 10/25/2026 13:59:54
Great image of this king vulture in such a nice pose! I like that you experimented with the shadow and light controls, as they allow you to balance the lighting. You did a good job with the crop, too. Personally, though, I prefer the drama of the original image. Posted: 10/25/2026 13:59:54