Northern Cardinal

I photographed this Northern Cardinal in Peace Valley in early March this year. Although still cold, it was a beautiful sunny day. My wife spotted the cardinal almost immediately after entering the park and pointed it out to me. It was perched on the highest branch of a tree – a bright red bird against the blue sky.

D7200, Nikkor 200-500mm | 1/500, f/5.6 @ ISO 180

There are a few things wrong – the focus is on the claws instead of on its head and the angle isn’t great. Nevertheless I like this photo a lot. The colors, the contrast and the glint in the cardinals’ eye make it work for me.