Collared Sparrowhawk Glare

https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8682/...4c3faaf9_o.jpg

Hi all, this is my first critique post so please be gentle!

I photographed this Collared Sparrowhawk at Gluepot Reserve, South Australia at the Grasswren Hide (with thanks to Helga of Bellbird Birding Tours). This is my favourite image with the bird glaring straight down the lens. At the time, I was struck by the bird's beautiful and subtle pastel colours. I'm not sure if I have managed to emphasise this successfully in post.

All suggestions most welcome thanks.

Nikon D800E, TC-20E III, 70-200 f/2.8 VRII at 400mm, HH
+2/3 EV, ISO 400, 1/320 sec at f/6.3
LR5, PS CC 2014, 8.5x10 vertical crop, darkened pupils using curve, burned light areas in background, Topaz Clarity on the subject only

A very nice first post -- welcome!! I like the way the bird blends in with the subtle background colors. The perch is interesting but doesn't overpower the bird.

Handholding at 400mm at that shutter speed can cause some subtle loss of sharpness, and that is something that can rarely be compensated by sharpening. I would risk a higher ISO, or at least bracket to some higher shutter speeds if time permits.

The bright area (limb) on the right competes with the bird a little. An area like that can often be darkened subtly -- Nik's Viveza can often do a wonderful job of masking things like this. Some crop could also be done from the right, with a balancing amount from the bottom if you want to keep the same ratio.

All in all, a great first post though! Look forward to seeing more! You live in a bird paradise!

Hay Mark, welcome to posting on BPN! What a great subject, and I love the "down-the-barrel" stare. Great erect pose, I like the slightly open wings and long tail...not to mention the great view of the long slender legs. The perch is pretty cool and scraggly giving neat shapes and curves. The two oof background trees are unfortunate but being in a hide you take what you get, but had you been free to move without spooking the subject trying to go left or right (right giving you a better light angle) my have helped depending what else is out of the frame. The darker one is not oof bad, but I would further tone down the brighter one (my favorite tool is the burn tool, and then maybe some sponge to regain a bit of colour). Both done judiciously else giving obvious processing clues.

All in all a fantastic debut of a memorable subject. Hoping to see more :-)

Thanks for the constructive comments Diane & Daniel. I agree the bg trees are distracting. I have already darkened them but will have a go at darkening them further over the next couple of days.

Here's a quick look at the possibility -- done with masked Curves to darken the branch and the UL and LR corners. Some cropping to remove part of the right and a distracting area at the bottom. The bird has a lot less competition now.