Gulls -which one?

This is the original of my second attempt at birds 'on the fly'. The first one was a complete disaster. Following is a technique I tried with 'inversion'. Not sure if it works or if there appears to be a lot of banding.

I like the colors but not sure whether it's working...And if there's banding does anyone know how to fix it, please?

Gulls exif

Kora, I love the second one! Moody, interesting and filled with menacing possibilities...:D
I'm on my laptop so can't see any banding, but I'm sure that others will be able to help you with this. I love the gradation of colours on the LHS and the way that the gulls look as if they have been lit by the dying sun.
Best,
Nicki

Kora, I love the second one also. The rich colors and the mood are fantastic! Nicely done. I'm not seeing very much banding. I also don't know how to fix it but if you start w/ a 16 bit image usually you will have less.

Both images work for me, but I agree the second is dynamite. I don't see any banding either and I love the subtle frame.
Regards

Kora,

Greetings. Interesting shot... I particularly like the different levels of abstraction. The second image is more dramatic and I like the color contrast.

I think you are picking up the banding (or near banding) from the inversion which inverts the limited color range of the blue sky to a very wide color range. Essentially expressing a limited color resolution in a wide gamut (if that makes sense), through the inversion process. You could duplicate the layer, add a gaussian blur, add a black mask and paint over (add the blur to) the objectionable areas, leaving the detail in the birds... what I would do.

Cheers,

-Michael-

I tried alot of BIF Gulls..none came out, like yours..really like the second post...

Both images look great, but the second is a real stunner! it has a very dramatic feel. :)

Thank you all so much for looking and commenting, and for the very helpful advice. It's greatly appreciated:)