Good capture.
I also longed for a closer picture of a Redheaded duck when I first started
looking for water-fowl and using a Canon G9 point-and-shoot camera.
They were always so far away if I even spotted any. Attempts I made at
Bluffer's park were pointless because they hung around the docks of the
marina and I was not a member and had to watch them from the other
side. I finally got a so-so shot at Sam Smith but even then the male duck
saw me and was retreating with alacrity. Things improved after I got an
entry-level DSLR as a gift although the first year I was restricted to the
kit lens 18-135mm. Even now, having a 200mm it requires me to employ
stealth and extreme patience to offset my shortsightedness. The best Redheaded
duck shots I got were always in early March so you still have time to get more shots.
Light is everything. Fortunately there are many kinds of desirable lighting
conditions that work and a low sun position is definitely one of them, although
it does tend to deliver extreme contrast, so your subject's position is critical.
Bright overcast is also good for Redheaded ducks. Indeed it works particularly
well for those water-fowl with extreme contrast plumage, such as male Common
Merganser and male Bufflehead. In order to manage the white feathers I compensate
to the left by 2/3 stop, but that just buries the dark matter into oblivion.
