bosque

nikon d 300
500 mm

Great poses, BG, colors and detail on the cranes.

Why is there so much luminance noise? Even in this relatively small size, it really jumps out.

Stuart, lovely colors. I think you could lighten the shadows on the wings a bit.:S3:

Stuart, I like the painterly effect. The symmetry of the cranes is pleasing. The techs of the original image appear to be on the money. I agree with Cheryl that more detail could be teased out of the shadows.

Oh wait, you intended for that grain to be there.

May I say, I don't like it. It's to close to luminance noise. I think that if you're going to add grain or texture, you need to go so far that it's clear that it's not accidental, but that's just my opinion. I would prefer plain ole bokeh here.

Dave, this is a sort of watercolor paper texture thing. I'm pretty neutral on it -- it doesn't send me into raptures. But I do greatly admire the formation flying here (and its capture)! Lighter shadows could be a good idea.

Excellent base image Stuart, and a nice painterly effect. I agree about lightening the shadows a bit. The paper texture might be a bit strong, but it doesn't look at all like noise to me. I use that texture myself or a similar one in other plugins.

I like the strong colors to go with the strong shapes of the birds. The texture doesn't bother me. I would crop a bit from the bottom to get rid of that darker band of color, and then a bit from the top. Just my view. I love the position of the birds and how they relate to the background.