Bathing GBH 2

Sony A900~Sony 70-400G@400mm~manual exposure under overcast sky~ISO 3200~1/1600sec~F7.1~1-17-2012~Brazos Bend State Park,Texas--CS5-Topaz Detail2, Topaz Clean, Redield Fractalius, pixel bender

Photo taken a second after the previous image, processed differently; same plugins but Fractalius/pixel bender used first followed by topaz, which is different than my first image where topaz was used first. Incidentally I have created 2 PS actions using the plugins; one with fractalius/pixel bender and one with topaz detail/clean.

Comments and critique welcomed. regards~Bill

Hi Bill. Another strong image, but I personally prefer the processing done on the first one more....I find the mottled effect on the white background of this one a bit distracting, and the beautiful pencil sketch feel I found so appealing in the first is not quite as clearly defined or as evident in this one. Dont' get me wrong...I still like the image!...I just prefer the processing of the first image in the series that you posted. That said...your image, your vision, and the composition of this one is also very strong...you've managed to capture some unique images of a blue heron in a behavior I've never been privileged to witness! I look forward to seeing more from you.

Bill, I think they are both great. I like the effect you achieved with this one. Seems a bit tight on top and I might take a sliver off the bottom to eliminate the lighter front edge. The small line in the center front of image I might evict even though it is probably natural. Very appealing image and again it's wonderful to see some of your work again.

Thanks John and Denise. Good eye as usual Denise; missed the vertical line in he center that seems to be a processing artifact. Appreciate the compositional adjustments that I agree would help. John; the processing differences, and preference for one or the other, is quite subjective, and I really look foward hearing other points of view! I don't find the background to be distracting in this case, but more or less unifying, but thats just my opinion. As far as being my vision; I don't look at it thay way. I look it as a result of a "process" and often I am surprised how it turns out! regards~Bill

Another nice one, William. I think the pose of your previous one is a little more interesting, but still very nice composition and great filtering. Good suggestions above.

Another excellent composition, Bill. I like both although my slight preference is for the earlier one on processing and the resulting effect. Nicely done!

Hi Bill, they are both lovely captures, but I think I prefer this one just a touch more. Killer processing here too!

I love the look of your images! Fabulous post processing work. Creating actions of them was a good idea, since you perfected the steps.
I'm not sure what line Denise referred to. I would clone the line of water falling from the beak, and the drop of water a bit further down the neck in the background--they distract me from the gorgeous bird.
I've no preference between this one and the prior one--I like them both. They are similar but different and I like the variety.
I know what you mean about not having vision, and sometimes being surprised by the results. I congratulate you on your experimentation and discoveries.