Ask Jim

Every month, Jim will answer a question from his online students, from people who participate in his tours and workshops, or from subscribers to this magazine. If you have a question you’d like Jim to answer, please drop him a note at photos@jimzuckerman.com.

Q: Jim . . . I took this picture of a brown pelican in the Galapagos Islands several years ago with a film camera. I think it’s not bad, but I can’t quite put my finger on the reason why it’s not a truly successful picture. What do you think? Melissa Adams, Macon, Georgia A: There are two major problems with this picture. First, the white head feathers are blown out -- meaning they’ve lost texture and detail and have become solid white. This is never good. Since there are no other birds in the picture from which you might be able to ‘borrow’ well exposed white feathers, this problem is not fixable unless you could possibly use a pelican from another shot, in the same light, and replace the blown out white area with that detail.

Second, the midday lighting is too harsh and unattractive. That’s why the white head feathers are solid white, and the rest of the image is simply too contrasty. The Galapagos Islands straddle the Equator, and that means sunlight after 8:30 or 9am and before 4:30pm is simply too harsh to use for optimal nature photography. §