Merlin

http://www.telusplanet.net/public/onewing/IMG_6069.jpg

I think the prey was a Western Meadowlark

Canon 30D
500 f/4 IS + TC 1.4
Shutter Speed: 1/1600
Aperture: f/7.1
ISO: 400
Exposure Program: Manual
Full Frame cropped vertical
1 Hand Held from car

Critique and comments are most welcomed
thanks for looking

The exposure and BG really stand out on this image! Well so does the bloody prey... gotta love nature. Very good image.

Graphic image Darren !!! Love the clean look and super bg !!! Might increase contras on the bird just a tad, particularly around the head. Also would like more room around the tail if you have it !!! I like it a lot !!!!

Wow! I like it as is, but I might desaturate the reds by about 10 points; more if I wanted to make it less graphic, but I'm not really bothered by gore.


I'm with Al on boosting contrast on the bird. The way _I_ would do it is to use selective color and boost the blacks in the black and neutrals by up to five points each while using a mask to keep the adjustments where I want them.

Darren
An excellent up close view of a bird that's hard to get near.....and with his meal. I'd give a little more room at least on the bottom for his tail. Well done with this one.

Love the way it's staring you down. Agree about more room at the bottom. Also the eyes look a little soft on my monitor. Thanks for posting!

Awesome shot - agree with the eyes comment

lance

Very nice eye contact, BG and very sharp. However, the image is too tight as the tail needs more room.