Wax(w)ing eloquent

[gail bisson]

Bohemian waxwings.
This is one of my favorite images from this year. Taken from car, on bean bag.
Canon 1DMVIV
600mm and 1.4X III
1/1250@7.1 ISO 800
I wish the tail was within DOF but I am still happy with this one.
PP: 80 % FF took some off left and bottom, pretty much straight out of the box. NR to BG, levels and USM to JPEG. Cloned out some dust spots.
Comments and critiques always appreciated and learned from with thanks,
Gail

[Iain Barker]

Great picture Gail

I think this is one of the nicest Waxwing pictures I have seen. I like the position of the two birds and the interesting perch.
I love the background colours the tones seem to match the tones in the birds exactly.

Although I like the composition I also think more of a crop on the left would work maybe even to a square format. What do you think?

Iain

[Michael Gerald-Yamasaki]

Gail,

Greetings. What a beautiful shot. The interaction, color, detail, bg... are all superb. The half eaten fruit between the birds draws the eye. Toning it down might do the trick. If it were mine, I might try a vertical comp, losing the right side and extending a bit upward. Thanks for posting one for me to aspire to.

Cheers,

-Michael-

[Grace Scalzo]

Hummmm, how about a trim from the right, eliminating that stray berry. Of course you would end up with a square, but I think that might be an option in this case.

[MohsenVahedipour]

What a nice interaction Gail! Two birds are sharp & both in focus. I also like the perfect light, clean BG & lovely perch. TFS

[Bill Dix]

Wonderful. I can see why it's your favorite. Light on the birds is great; interaction very nice. I love the way the eaten berry glows - don't tone it down. And I like the comp just as presented. It would also make a nice square image, but I don't mind the stray berry.

[Martin Dunn]

Neat shot Grace. Beautiful birds and great colours. I especially like the half eaten berries and the interaction between the birds.
If I'm being picky - Composition wise the stray berry on the right doesn't add anything and you could easily crop it out and I'd like a bit more space at the top (if you have it)
or you could just leave it as it is because it is a lovely shot.

[David Salem]

Hi Gail,
I can see why Its your favorite, it looks great. The image has allot of great components to it. Color, action , detail and a beautiful complementary BG. The yellow in the tails really adds to the image. Techs look awesome! Well done.

[Iain Barker]

I should of course have said crop from the right not left. Bit of a mental block there for a minute

[Stu Bowie]

Hi Gail, well timed for the behaviour from the waxwing on the right. I do like the detail and colours around their faces and beaks, and the colours in the BG compliment them nicely. I quite like the perch extending into the frame.

Are these two male and female, or two males having a disagreement?

[Marina Scarr]

Lovely details, colors and interaction. While this comp works, I do think a square crop would better showcase this pair. I would also add a tad to the top.

[Daniel Cadieux]

Superb interaction, we can even see the left bird leaning back a bit from the right one's aggression! Although the suggestions to crop more at right are good I still like the comp as is. Nice wintry setting even without the presence of snow. Dof on the tail is not an issue at all to me...

[gail bisson]

Thank you for all your suggestions.Here is a slightly different crop and the next image in this series (they are almost identical)
To explain my previous choice of crop- I liked the "out on a limb" feeling that the OP conveys
Gail

[Marina Scarr]

I like this crop/comp much better but really feel it needs a tad more room on top if you have it.

[Roy Priest]

Gail, I can't add too much to what has been said but I like the repost. Great interaction and the subdued colours work really well with the yellow adding a zing to the picture.

[Tony Whitehead]

These are great, Gail. Awesome colours and textures against that lovely smooth BG. I have a slight preference for the second image but both work for me. Agree a little more room at the top would be nice.

[Grace Scalzo]

I have come back to look at the original and the repost several times. So confused! I feel like the first one is unbalanced....heavy on the left side and my eye keeps drifting down to the right corner to that stray berry. But the repost doesn't work for me...needs more room on top as the birds feel crowded. It's such a pretty image, worth working on the comp until you find something that YOU love.

[Jonathan Ashton]

Outstanding image with equally apt title. I try not to read previous comments to avoid bias but I rather like the first image.

[mohammad reza shahab]

hi Gail,
I love the background colours, details. perfect light & lovely perch.

[Satish Ranadive]

"Classic image" with wonderful composition. Beautiful birds with lovely colors.
Love the expression both of them.

Regards,
Satish.

[christopher galeski]

Great interaction here,love the BG and light,nice colors,like the first post best,but there is nothing wrong with second post.TFS.

[Ivan Ellison]

What more can be said- it is wonderful. You have made the most of an opportunity that arose, and made me jealous in the process. Hope they make a return to uk this year- this pic has set the bar high and will give me something to aim for.

[Robert Kimbrell]

That' one sweet shot Gail. You can crop it any way you like. The interaction is wonderful, and the half eaten fruit adds. I also would like to see the tail more in the DOF. But you should be very happy with this.

[Minh Insixiangmy]

Love this capture Gail.