LBE take off

[Carl Walker]

Getting to know their behaviour quite well now. More and more keepers. Hope they not boring you.

Canon 1D MK IV, 300 f2,8 plus 2 X extender MK III
Bean bag

ISO 2500 - 1/2500 sec - f5,6 - Manual

I seem to be adjusting much better using Manual now and keeper rate is going up.

LR5 basics
PSE 9 - LM's - NR - Levels - colour curves - cloned out a oof bg branch running through the bird

C&C wlecome. Thanks

[Marina Scarr]

Your bee eaters are not boring at all! I wish we had them over this way. Love the wings up. I think I"d like to see this in more of a vertical. Tried a few different crops and this is what I came up with. Had to add a little space on top. I like the perch coming out of the corner. I'd sharpen the head a tad more.

[Vivaldo Damilano]

Works great Carl, love the pose you managed to get with upright wings. My only wish is to have the bird lower or more eye level. Hope to see more, nice shot.

[Sanjeev Aurangabadkar]

Very nice image Carl, I like it a lot!

[gail bisson]

I love all the curves in this image and that near wing flare is lovely.
I like both the OP and repost with Marina's being my favorite.
I find myself wishing I could see all of the tail but not a deal breaker.Since you cloned out the branch, I would repair the white dot on the bill as well.
I see a bit of noise in the wing and body - easy fix.
A really nice image. Well doen,
Gail

[Loi Nguyen]

Lovely take off pose, great details, good light. My vote is for Marina's RP. It's an excellent image. Gail already mentioned the tail. For me, I'd like to see the red eye a little bit more. Perhaps you can try to brighten it a little. Loi

[Carl Walker]

Thanks everyone for the comments. Quite like your crop Marina. The tail is unfortunate I know. Gail I am never sure how to deal with noise on bird. What is your take for an easy fix here? Thanks

[Karl Egressy]

Excellent timing, great take off pose. Marina's repost is a better composition IMO.

[Andre Pretorius]

Stunning image Carl!:bg3:
Crits/suggestions/compliments all covered above.

May I suggest that you feather your mask a bit more- there are abrupt endings at yellow throat feathers and bottom of twig below his feet.

Your work is getting better and better:cheers:

[Barry Ekstrand]

Outstanding, the pose is just great. Carl, what was the time of day on this shot?

Great job all the way around.

Barry

[gail bisson]

Hi Carl,
For internet presentation,I will select the area with the noise , feather it ( go to modify > feather at 2-4 pixels) and then noise reduction to taste maybe 1 or 2.
If you are printing this, then the noise won't be visible in the print so you don't have to worry about it. The detail will be more important to keep than NR.
Gail
Gail)
Thanks everyone for the comments. Quite like your crop Marina. The tail is unfortunate I know. Gail I am never sure how to deal with noise on bird. What is your take for an easy fix here? Thanks

[Carl Walker]

Sorry coming back here late. Thanks Andre, Karl, Barry and Gail for the tip. Appreciate it.