Pelican and fisherman, a photo from the Ocean Beach pier. See it larger at my photoblog, The Occasional Odd Crop.
My stepson, John, was in town for a couple of days and hadn’t seen the ocean. So we stopped by the pier this morning before I dropped him off at the airport. This was the first time I’d seen pelicans sitting on the pier, and the closest I’d ever been to one of these prehistoric-looking birds. Incredible creatures.
I have photos where the fisherman is in focus and the pelican is soft, and vice versa. But in the end, I liked having them both fairly sharp. And while the pelican’s colors are beautiful - red on the beak, sharp blue eyes, a subtle yellow on the head - our friend here stood out better against the sky in black and white.

Pelican and fisherman, a photo from the Ocean Beach pier. See it larger at my photoblog, The Occasional Odd Crop.

My stepson, John, was in town for a couple of days and hadn’t seen the ocean. So we stopped by the pier this morning before I dropped him off at the airport. This was the first time I’d seen pelicans sitting on the pier, and the closest I’d ever been to one of these prehistoric-looking birds. Incredible creatures.

I have photos where the fisherman is in focus and the pelican is soft, and vice versa. But in the end, I liked having them both fairly sharp. And while the pelican’s colors are beautiful - red on the beak, sharp blue eyes, a subtle yellow on the head - our friend here stood out better against the sky in black and white.

Work in progress, just posted at my photoblog, The Occasional Odd Crop, where you can see a much larger version, along with what I hope is an incorrect warning about photographing strangers.

Work in progress, just posted at my photoblog, The Occasional Odd Crop, where you can see a much larger version, along with what I hope is an incorrect warning about photographing strangers.