Song Sparrow

[Brian Barcelos]

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2589/4118283427_3e65d82285_o.jpg

Looking for a Harrier today (didn't find him:() I ran across a large concentration of song birds feasting on berries from all the bushes around. I tried for the first time pishing today and this is my result. All the little birds were very curious as to what I was doing and would come check me out, but all from within the leaf clutter of the bushes. This was the cleanest of the images. Not sure if its still too cluttered but I like the enviro look and the colors.
All C/C appreciated, Thanks for looking

Canon EOS 50D
Manual Exposure
Tv 1/800
Av 6.3
Evaluative Metering
ISO Speed 400
Tamron 200-500mm
Focal Length 500mm
Hand held
75% FF

[Ben Egbert]

I like this a lot. I think you did a good job toning down the background, and it has a pleasing look to me, Good job.

[Kiran Poonacha]

loved the feel here Brian Bhai, nice pose and the reds add well to the frame.. congrats..

[Tony Whitehead]

Lovely colours from that crop of rose hips. Bird is nice and sharp with a nice pose. The diagonal stem heading into the right upper corner is a slight distraction and could be reduced a bit. Blurring the BG a little more may be another option. Here's a quick version using OnOne Focalpoint.

[Ofer Levy]

Such a lovely shot!!
At first I didn't like the re-post as it feels too manipulated. However, the more I look at it the more I like it. I never blur the BG in my images as I feel this is too much of a digital creation. However, in this case I think it does improve the image.

[Wil Hershberger]

Lovely. It really places the song sparrow in its habitat. I agree that the BG is a little busy and the repost is nice. All depends on your comfort level with this much manipulation. The repost does make the bird standout more.

[Dave Leroy]

Lovely looking photo. I like both posts and possibly something in between the two would be more to my taste. I really like the inclusion of the colourful habitat. Dave

[Matthew Studebaker]

yes, excellent re-post. I see a lot of bird-on-perch shots that seem too sterile but i love the extra information in the background. It's beautiful and in the repost it supports, but does not distract from the main subject in my opinion. beautiful work.

[Arsdel Fluesmeier]

I think this is well done. If you wanted to you could blur the bg a bit. I like habitat shots tho.

[Stu Bowie]

Lovely colourful image Brian, and the berries dont distract. Good sharp detail on the sparrow, and Tony's repost works well.

[Fabs Forns]

I love the BG and colors of the OOF berries, very nice, Brian.

[Daniel Cadieux]

I didn't mind the look of the original post, but the branch Tony removed had to go! Good pose, and I love the burgundies of the fruits and branches - and the added splash of green and yellow is a nice touch. Amazing how well pishing can work sometimes, eh!

[Brian Barcelos]

Thanks for all the input guys, really appreciated.
Tony, love the re post and I did consider more blur as I already gave it a slight Gaussian blur but was scarred of over doing it.
Dan, I was very surprised with the result and hope to try it again very soon.