Indigo bunting

[Jim Thomas]

One of my favorite birds that nest around here. I liked how this capture shows the color variations in the feathers.
Thanks for peeking,

Jim

Device: Nikon D5000
Lens: VR 150-500mm F/5-6.3G
Focal Length: 500mm
Focus Mode: AF-C
AF-Area Mode: Dynamic
VR: OFF
Aperture: F/6.3
Shutter Speed: 1/160s
Exposure Mode: Aperture Priority
Metering: Spot
ISO Sensitivity: ISO 640

128973

[Bruce Enns]

Hey Jim, A beautiful bird with gorgeous colours. Your image is nice and sharp and has great DOF. Exposure looks spot on. For this pose, I would like just a bit more of a head turn towards me and a slightly smaller perch...but hey, if it was mine, I'd be pretty happy the way it is...well done.

Cheers!
Bruce

[Marina Scarr]

Lovely bird and BG, and I am okay with the bird looking away. I am seeing evidence of masking around some of your bird and your BG needs more NR>

[Robert Holguin]

Nice shot.
Great background and pose.
A tad more head turn towards you would have been nice , but still a great shot.
Agree on the issues brought up by Marina.
Well done.

[Daniel Cadieux]

A species I still don't have in my files! I too would have liked a bit more head turn this way, and perhaps have the subject sit lower in the frame. The perch is big, yes, but it has nice texture to it. BG seems to suffer from compression artefacts...

[Karen Forderer]

I like the way that you have shown the variation in wing colour. I am hoping to see one of these birds this year.

[Jim Thomas]

Thanks Marina. the masking on this image is giving me grief. There is an odd glow or halo around certain parts of the bird almost like the air itself is reflecting the blue in the bird. Can't quite figure out how to deal with it. As for the NR, I've done two rounds on the BG and it seems to become more posterized the more I do. Back to the drawing board I guess (or the trashcan)

Jim
Lovely bird and BG, and I am okay with the bird looking away. I am seeing evidence of masking around some of your bird and your BG needs more NR>

[Jim Thomas]

Thanks Daniel. What are compression artifacts? If you mean the posterization, I'd love to know how to get rid of them!

Jim
A species I still don't have in my files! I too would have liked a bit more head turn this way, and perhaps have the subject sit lower in the frame. The perch is big, yes, but it has nice texture to it. BG seems to suffer from compression artefacts...