THEME - CACTUS WREN

The Cactus Wren is on an ocotillo with a Arizona Sycamore bark bg. PP included a light touch of Fractalius. I am not certain this is creative enough for a Dave Phillips theme.

This is terrific. The shot and rendering of the wren on the branch are outstanding, and the background treatment is worth bonus points. Great work.

I think you did an excellent job with the processing of the wren and I like the way the branch looks, nice texture there. I also like the subtle texture of the background.

Very artistic Gary. I like the position of the bird in the frame, and the BG is very delicate. Well done.

Well composed, artistic without going overboard-I really like the high key approach. This is another one that would make a great series study. Well done!

I missed this one till now -- I love it!! A perfect balance for a drawing look, and a great image to start with!

Lovely, lovely, lovely. I like everything about it and Dave would have appreciated its artistic rendition. (I changed it to a theme image:S3:)

Thanks to all for your kind encouraging comments. Denise Ippolito in her recent Mini Mag presented her newest favorite PP effect. It is a combination of Photoshop Poster Edge and Nik CEP4 Midnight. I gave it a whirl on this image. I used a mask with the effect mainly on the bg with a light touch on the wren.

I like the effect on the background, but I prefer your original version of the perch and wren.

Wow on the Wren, what personality you captured! Great on the Ocotillo. I like the BG too, though maybe a little softer on it.

Still fond of the OP, however the new BG isn't bad at all. Is there a tutorial available on processing in this style (original post)?

Really like the delicate drawing-effect of this! Great composition with the wren and branch on one side and the fine lines in the bark on the other. Prefer the high key bkgd of the OP as the more complicated bkgd competes visually with the lines of the wren and perch.

Randall, I arrived at the original image via trial and error. The original wren image was captured against a overcast sky imparting a high key effect. I applied a light Fractalius effect to the wren and cactus. Redfield's Fractalius, in my opinion, is a worthwhile plug-in. Denise Ippoliti and Andrew McLachland have produced an e-book entitled Fractastic a comprehensive user guide for the Redfield Fractalius Filter. In my opinion Fractalius is not an intuitive filter. I found their e-book helpful. The bg tree bark was applied as a layer with the reduced saturation. Using a layer mask, I removed the this change from the wren and cactus.

Thanks Gary, I looked at Fractilius awhile ago but never purchased it. I'll give it another look, as well as the guide.

Excellent! Love how the bird is clear and detailed and beautifully positioned. The branch angling upward is just right. I like both versions, but might try toning down the bg just a bit on the second. Outstanding work! Love the clarity and simplicity.

Hi, Gary, although I like the repost I prefer the high key look of the OP. Both are nice:S3:

I like the bg of the second and the bird of the original:bg3:!