Sandpiper Preening

Canon 40D
500mm +1.4 ex.
1/640 sec. at f/6.3
ISO 250
Tripod
Morning light

I added a slight embossed look to this. I liked the effect on the wavelet and the feathers. I masked most of it off the BG.
Conversion in Photoshop w/ a light Sepia filter

Very, very nice Lady Denise,
I like the effect, the head turn is lovely, I like the mood...well done...:cool:

Denise, Nice effect and I like the preening pose. Good low angle for capture. b&w conversion looks good.

Denise,

Nice bird image to begin with. I don't know what the bird board folks would say but I like the over the shoulder look. Actually, I like everything about this image except the thing you said you like and that is the embossed wavelet. It looks too artificial and as result, I keep staring at it rather than the bird.

Very nice, Denise. Great eye contact. The light sepia tone and embossed effect look good.

Thanks guys for the feedback. I appreciate it.

Denise,
It looks like you started with a really well-executed image - good pose, nicely arranged, clean BG. The embossing is clearly a matter of taste, but I like the effect in images with good texture (like this one). Good idea to mask off the effect in smooth areas too - otherwise it can introduce some odd-looking artifacts.

Try embossing a flower that has texture in the petals (if you haven't already) - I find the visual conflict/contradiction of making a soft flower petal look like sandstone to be interesting. Try blending the original color image with the embossed image using overlay, soft light, or color blending mode.

Thanks Chris for the idea-I'll give it a try! Missed you around the forums!!:)