Thank you for your kind comments, Randy. I went through a period where the 1D mark II was my first choice for marine based images. I loved the stability that the weight of the camera body imparts to the process... I used a Nikon F2AS/MD1 for 3 decades and I like to feel I am holding a substantial camera. 
I came to know the 16~35mm lens pretty well on that particular shoot and when it is used with the APSh sensor of the 1D mark II, it seems to be a very good copy and it appeared to be rectilinear at 20mm, with fairly insignificant edge distortion. An addition to my shooting is a hand strap and a wide neck strap. The hand strap makes the camera easy to hold, even by your fingertips if needed when shooting in awkward locations, and the neck strap is wrapped around my shooting arm in a manner that lets me shoot while pushing outwards with my arm and bracing the camera against the strap and when holding the camera to my forehead, it is reasonably stable if a little heavy to maintain the position for longer than say... 10 seconds without having to readjust position.
The noise reduction was applied in the processing for this image because I wanted to have as smooth a conversion as it was possible to get, so that I could emulate the 32 ISO film I had chosen as accurately as possible. (I had picked Kodak Panatomic X for its deep blacks and creamy whites)
Like all grab shots, we don't usually get to choose the exact circumstances surrounding the shot and if I was setting the shot up, I would have taken some care to get a much cleaner and less busy composition in the image frame. I don't usually have the time to shoot very much for myself but if I did, then these are the kind of mono image conversions images I would want to make. Thanks for stopping by and making some encouraging comments. 
Randy1213 wrote in post #10805684
I like it. Amazed at how sharp it is, given that you shot it from the water and with a non-IS lens at f/10. Even at 1/500 sec., that's a situation where I likely would have gotten some blur. You deserve credit just for that! I also like the conversion very much. Wondering why you had to apply any noise reduction, though. But as for the conversion itself, I think it's excellent and may try your "recipe" myself on some photos. As for the photo, I too have shot wavy lines created by reflections in ripples and really like them. Just wondering if you can't get them with this same sharpness and BW conversion in a composition a bit simpler. This is a lovely photo as-is but, in my humble opinion, I think a simpler composition would make it even better. Thanks for sharing the photo and the details.
