Blackburnian Warbler in Flight

[Melissa Groo]

Canon 1D4
500mm
Gitzo/Wimberley

ISO 800
1/2500 sec
f/5.6

Taken during Studebaker's workshop in Allegany State Park, NY, weekend before last.
I wonder about the crop, and leaving the perch in. Guess it's nice to have the perch as a presence, as it's really seems to be more of a takeoff pose than a flying along pose. But not sure what others think.
Did some NR, sharpening, cropped about 30%, added canvas on left, and did some recovery on whites.
All comments and critiques greatly appreciated.Thanks for looking!

[Colin Knight]

The head is soft. Looks like you were focused on where he was perched then maybe he flew slightly towards you? The inclusion of the perch is appropriate IMO. Very nice wing position!

[Melissa Groo]

I realized it looked soft too after I posted. I always back off from sharpening, afraid that things will look oversharpened, but then I shoot myself in the foot, by undersharpening.
Is this an improvement, I hope?

[Peter Dexter]

The whole bird looks a little soft to me but very nice capture never the less. While the perch "tells the storey" I don't think it contibutes artisticly and it would be interesting to see the photo with out it. That said I've never gotten such a nice Blackburian shot and I have them in droves all winter.

[gail bisson]

Hi Melissa,
What beautiful warblers these Blackburnians are. The BG and the wing position are excellent. But,unfortunately, even in the improved repost the head is slightly blurry. I don't think SS was the issue but rather he flew slightly out of plane of focus.
i like the inclusion of the perch as it is a takeoff pose.
I bet you got some awesome perched shots of this handsome guy.
Gail

[rajojomanik]

Really like the wing postion and the perch I would leave as it adds to the image for me.

Soft as noted but a great shot in my opinion.

[Wheeler McDougal Jr.]

Hi Melissa,
I would like to say if this imige is soft, I'll take it any time. I think sometimes the members of this site are so picky it becomes counter prductive. I'll bet not one of the critics of your image have one that is even close to yours. Good work, I would kill for one that good.

[Ofer Levy]

Hi Melissa,
I would like to say if this imige is soft, I'll take it any time. I think sometimes the members of this site are so picky it becomes counter prductive. I'll bet not one of the critics of your image have one that is even close to yours. Good work, I would kill for one that good.

That's a very interesting statement not very appropriate in a critique forum IMHO....:Whoa!:
It is soft beyond repair and it is not a keeper for a photographer at your level IMHO. Two things went wrong: first, you were prefocusing on the perch and obviously once the bird left the perch the distance from the camera was changed. Second factor which is as important - since the camera is static and the bird is flying in the frame your shutter speed has to be as fast as possible - 1/3200 or even faster. It is different than flight shots when you follow the bird by panning then the relative speed of the bird in much lower than in a static camera situation.

[arash_hazeghi]

Hi Melissa,
the pose is great and so is the BG but the image is soft. I think the focus was locked on the perch. It's going to be tough to fix this one

[arash_hazeghi]

Hi Melissa,
I would like to say if this imige is soft, I'll take it any time. I think sometimes the members of this site are so picky it becomes counter prductive. I'll bet not one of the critics of your image have one that is even close to yours. Good work, I would kill for one that good.

Mac,

I don't think your comments are appropriate for this forum. This forum is for critique not for sugar coating images. If we have great photographers like Melissa here who share their work and help others improve their photography is because the standards are high and we provide honest critique. People actually take time to view the image and make a relevant comment.

A good critique is a critique that mentions both strong and weak points and help the poster improve on their weaker points and that is the purpose of this forum.

[Jonathan Ashton]

Melissa it is a "nearly" shot, I agree with Arash and Ofer, their advice and comments are spot on. I think this shot will prove valuable for future similar attempts.

[Melissa Groo]

Thank you all for your comments.I am fond of this image and will keep it though I do see it falls short of being a contender, it's simply too soft. You all are right, the focal point must have been on the perch; also, having removed my TC, I should have been shooting wide open and that would have gained me some SS.
I do greatly value the honesty of this forum, it is what keeps me striving for improvement. I would not want anyone to hesitate to be completely honest and direct. That is the reason I spend time posting on this forum and reading through it. It is like no other and I am deeply grateful to all those that participate and who keep the standards so high.

[Dumay de Boulle]

This is really just not up to your usual high standard IQ wise. Lots of things are right here like the angle of light, flight angle, exposure, BG and perfect wing position...But there is no getting away from the fact the that the image is OOF (Which you know and others have commented on)...This one may not be a keeper but soon you will get one that will be. Keep them coming Melissa as I always enjoy looking at your work.

[Stu Bowie]

Hi Melissa, well timed for the take off, and for these type of images, one should always leave the perch in - it balances the comp too. Great advice from above, and these shots do take practise and experimenting to see what settings work best. Unfortunately you probably dont have this set up available every weekend to practise. :w3

[Frank Schauf]

A great dynamic situation, congratulations.

[Daniel Cadieux]

Melissa, I'm glad you take the critiques the way they are meant...and that is to help you. This is one of those images that would have had my heart beating very strongly from viewing on the LCD in the field, but then disappoint at first glance on the computer monitor. I agree the subject is very noticeably soft, which is too bad, but there is not much you could have apart from much higher shutter speed IMO (using flash as main light to freeze the subject, effective for hummers, would be difficult with unpredictable birds such as warblers). It is nice for wing and tail field mark ID purposes as you have a killer downstroke of the wing. As for the perch, I would leave it in too. Warblers are lots of fun, hope you had a great time with them!!:S3:

[Bill Dix]

Hi Melissa. This was a tough shot, and you almost got it. I would certainly keep it in my files, and learn from the effort. Amazing just to see a Blackburnian somewhere other than the tops of tall trees. I'd keep the perch. [Good, honest critique is essential to the forum, and to our continuing improvement as photographers, as you so well put it.]