This is a roseate spoonbill taking a bath in Myakka River State Park, Florida. I took this shot just before I went digital. The fastest shutter speed on my Mamiya RZ 67 medium format film camera was 1/400th of a second, and that's why this action image isn't as sharp I'd like it to be. Still, what I especially like about this is the low angled perspective. I used a Mamiya 500mm telephoto, and the camera and lens were mounted on a Gitzo tripod. The tripod wasn't extended because I was sitting on the ground for the eye-level angle. When I repositioned the tripod to accommodate my sitting position, the center plate just under the bullhead broke into two pieces. I'll never forget that. I held part of the tripod and one leg in one hand, and the other part with two legs in the other hand. When I sent the tripod back to Gitzo for a replacement, they accused me of abusing their tripod. All I did was spread the legs and reposition the tripod. There were no signs of abuse, not even a single ding. I always wondered if they thought I'd had a bad day and went around banging rocks with the tripod. They wouldn't stand by their product, and they wouldn't replace my very expensive tripod, so I've never purchased another Gitzo since then.
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