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SonyA700~Sony70-400G@400mm~ISO640~F5.6~1/1250 sec~manual exposure~11-29-2009~ Houston, Texas~CS4/Topaz Clean2
White pelicans, winter residents, have arrived at a local flood control reservoir:):):)
Although the Clean2 smoothed the image shot in very soft light a bit, it isn't that much different from from the base image. Since I used non-traditional PP (topaz clean2) I guess it needs to be here.
comments and critique welcomed. regards~Bill
Images Posted Here at BPN
Bill, The image has a nice softness to it that I like. Maybe reveal a bit more detail in the front wing. Nicely done.
Agree with the softness that Denise mentions - very nice! I like the background too - the colors and even that it is tilted. Usually that bothers me, but for some reason, it's okay here.
Good catch Bill! I love these big guys and it's unusual to me to see him over land. I like the colors and the soft look. I might be tempted to brush in some saturation on the bill and feet, but like it as presented!
Love the softness to this entire image, Bill. I feel like the face/head of the bird is a bit lackluster, though. Did you consider adding a little burning/dodging around his face and maybe a catchlight in the eye?
Nice composition and softness to this, Bill. Like the colors and pose. I find the bird's head kind of merges with the sky, so I agree with Jules that a little burning/dodging on the head would be good.
I appreciate the feedback! Although it doesn't appear in the image, the bird was flying over water and the background is the banks of the reservoir. What struck me most about the image was the pastels of the background. The background angle is due to a hill, more or less. I played around and straightened it and I'm not sure if it improved the image; the angle seemed to work as a dynamic element
About the bird detail, burning/dodging, etc and merge with background concerns; I don't see a merge with background problem on my monitor, but I realize the upper left wing needs a bit more detail, slight increase in detail as well as saturation in the eye/bill area. Interesting was the fact that these birds did not have bright orange bills that I expected, even with the low contrast lighting...must be too far out of breeding season? regards~Bill
My Images Posted Here at BPN
