Ghost Cranes

[Jeffrey Sipress]

While I do like to see creatures closeup, I truly enjoy seeing them in relation to their environment. That approach allows me to employ my landscape skills as well and create more interesting compositions. Last month I visited Bosque Del Apache for the first time. Here is one of my morning experiences. C&C welcome.

[Pete Woods]

I do like this, though I think it would look better with the trees cropped out with the top edge of the Image being the black of the lake (trees reflection).

Well done :)

[Randy Stout]

Jeff:

Very nice colors, nice that there is no overlap of the birds, although the reflections do merge on two.

I have mixed feelings about the upper 1/3 of the image. I appreciate adding the environment, but might be temped to crop it at the top of the dark band in the water, or perhaps above the bushes, just before the tree trunk starts. I am not sure how much the top part adds.

Hope you have more to share!

Randy

Pete:

I was typing my comments before your post hit the site, so obviously several people independently came up with the same cropping idea. Interesting. I would like to think it is that great minds think alike, but that definition excludes me, oh well.

[Jeffrey Sipress]

No, Randy, it includes you!

Thanks for the comments, they are worthy of an edit.

[John Cooper]

Very nice environmental shot Jeffrey - I love the mood that you have captured here and tend to like the way you have presented it here including a bit of the orange sky.
If it was cropped I would suggest just below the sky so as to retain that mottled orange strip across the frame (just below the tree trunk).

[mhackett]

I love the symmetry on this offset by the one bird preening upside down.