Green woodpecker (Picus viridis)

I couldn't believe it when this guy dropped in and then of course he had to go where the light was pretty poor. I was in my hide and I had to get out and peep round the corner to get some shots. Colours are flat but realistic due to the light and the fact that this was a grubby devil, it had been raining most of the night and he had been rummaging around in messy grasses. I appreciate not exactly how one would hope to see this bird but I was delighted to get it. Fingers crossed for better circumstances.


OM-1 150-400
Focal Length (35 mm conversion) : 651.0mm
ISO : 400
Exposure compensation : 0.0 EV
Exposure mode : Manual exposure
Shutter : 1/2500 sec
Aperture : F4.5
ACR/PSCC

Excellent but for the head angle. Where was this?

with love, artie

Jon, a first viewing this species for me so that's enjoyable!

You captured tremendous detail no doubt. Nice that the beak cleared that one straw just below but you could maybe take that out for more optimal viewing.

Despite this, it just feels flat and underexposed for me. I pulled into histogram and it appears you have loads of room on the highs and it really opens it up (sans that one bright grass stalk). I could also see giving it a little punch in the FG as it is all feeling even and drab from my view.

Anyhow, lots to like and yeah, would have been splendid to have some head turn.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Arthur Morris

Excellent but for the head angle. Where was this?

with love, artie

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Artie this is in our new home backyard/garden.... the grass is a mess but over the next few weeks hopefully it will improve.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Brian Sump

Jon, a first viewing this species for me so that's enjoyable!

You captured tremendous detail no doubt. Nice that the beak cleared that one straw just below but you could maybe take that out for more optimal viewing.

Despite this, it just feels flat and underexposed for me. I pulled into histogram and it appears you have loads of room on the highs and it really opens it up (sans that one bright grass stalk). I could also see giving it a little punch in the FG as it is all feeling even and drab from my view.

Anyhow, lots to like and yeah, would have been splendid to have some head turn.

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Glad you liked it Brian, I found it a little awkward to process, I treated the subject and background separately, I was tempted to make it brighter but felt it might look a little false.

Hello Jon,

Quite a find, and I am glad you managed a few frames, subject sharp with good detail, nice colours, love the dirty beak:bg3:

HA not perfect but somehow gives the bird a slightly quizzical look. The dark green blob in the top left corner draws the eye a bit, not a deal breaker, just thought I'd mention it.

Enjoyed seeing a new species and a pleasing image overall, thank you for sharing, Jon!

Warmest regards,

Hi Jon ... i am happy for you to get such shot of this WP species .
I am very much ok with the head angle , might get " better " .... but more than acceptable for my taste .
The ground is not the nicest one , but SHE had chosen to land there . I would agree with Brian there is lots of room to play with the tones , your call .
Seeing them on a regular basis in our garden ( no chance to take images ) ... I would argue the colors are slightly " Off " too much on the yellow side .
The WP does look too yellow to me ( should be greener ) as the green looking plants .... are more on the yellow side . Even the reds looking a bit orange ... should be deeper red ( IMHO )

But cool you took images of her ...

TFS Andreas

Thanks Gabriel and Andreas, I have some more slightly amusing images, I will review the colours but as I said the bird was in poor light in fact shadow so I didn't want to overdo things. Really pleased that overall the opinions are positive - thanks everyone!

If it was in fact in shadow I would expect even less yellow overall appearance , Jon .

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Andreas Liedmann

If it was in fact in shadow I would expect even less yellow overall appearance , Jon .

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:c3: noted.

My first thoughts was that it was flat and lacked any vibrance, saturation. But I think you caught the essence here after your description of poor light and wet conditions. Too bad on the HA. TFS

Hi Jon, nice capture, you did well, but head is just slight pointed away sadly, but they do cock their head at times at a jaunty angle. You say light was poor, but you were at ISO400, that's not poor, you have been in this heat wave too long. :bg3:

Bird looks about right, red could go a bit brighter/richer and watch the blacks in the face don't go to 'open'. The environment could go slight cooler less yellow, adding some dehaze/clarity, needs a slight fiddle :w3, but overall I think you did well. Loose the dark blob top left. Hope to see more.

TFS
Steve

I love it John, very good details and the low angle works well (as usually is the case). Good comp. I did not notice the blob in ULC before Steve mentioned it, and now it just won't go away lol. Head angle noted. What you call poor light I call perfect for my taste...cloudy is the best, right after low early/late light :-)