Photo by Quanzhu Duan
Kiss Of Gold
Location: Coyote Hills Regional Park, Fremont, California
Time of Day: Golden hour, near sunset
Story Behind the Photo:
In a fleeting instant, I witnessed a tern descend with effortless grace—its beak just barely brushing the water’s golden surface. I had only a second to react. This image, captured at just the right moment, tells the story of that rare and poetic encounter between bird and light.
What makes me most proud of this photo is how it conveys the story without needing words: the elegance of the tern’s motion, the suspended quiet of the moment, and the perfect symmetry of the scene.
Visual and Poetic Layers:
Beyond the action, the image stands out for its painterly contrast—the shimmering blue and gold reflections of sky and earth merge to form a dreamlike backdrop. The poetic heart of the image lies in its title, Kiss of Gold, which speaks to the fleeting beauty of contact, grace, and light.
Post processing notes:
Crop: Refined composition to center the tern and emphasize the precise moment its beak touches the water. Sharpness & Clarity: Applied ON1 Sharp AI for detail enhancement, paired with ON1 NoNoise AI to reduce background grain while preserving natural textures. Color Editing: Boosted luminance and saturation of blue and orange tones to accentuate the shimmer of water and light. Balanced contrast and exposure to enhance the golden warmth without losing feather detail.Exif information:
| Copyright: | 2025 |
| Camera: | Canon EOS R5m2 |
| Aperture: | f/8 |
| Focal Length: | 560mm |
| ISO: | 2000 |
| Shutter Speed: | 1/3200 sec. |
| Created: | June 4, 2025 12:18:22 |