Green Kingfisher

[Jeannean Ryman]

Hello all. First image posting and admit, I'm a bit nervous, but here goes...I was pleasantly surprised when this Green Kingfisher flew onto this perch not too far in front of me early yesterday morning. Unfortunately, a Green Heron chased if off, so I was only able to shoot three frames before it flew (all look pretty much the same except the first was out of focus a bit). I would appreciate comments, critiques, and suggestions as I want to get better at this. My post processing skills aren't advanced, but am eager to learn that area as well. The image was cropped on the left and a bit from the bottom. I also did a content aware fill of an out of focus branch next to the existing branch. Most adjustments were made in Lightroom 3.6 and finished/resized in CS 5.

Nikon D7000/500mm f/4-P (manual glass retaining metering)
ISO 400, Aperture priority, matrix metering
f/5.6, 1/400
manual focus on tripod

[Kerry Perkins]

Hello Jeannean, welcome to BPN and Eager To Learn! We are pleased to have you with us. This is a wonderful first post and what a great opportunity you had here. Great job of thinking fast and getting the shot! This is a tough bird to capture as they really seem to insist on hiding from us or hanging out "just out of range" and chattering. You have excellent detail, color, and exposure here. The composition works well for my eye. Some things to consider are the noise in the background, which can easily be remedied with NR software, and the slight sharpening halo that can be seen on the lower part of the bill. You could easily evict that in PS. I would also paint out the bit of spider web at the bottom of the perch. Other than that, this one is a winner in my book! I love the subtle green tint of the dark plumage, very nice work. Looking forward to more.

[Jeannean Ryman]

Thank you Kerry for the welcome and the suggestions! I appreciate it. I'll work on it a bit more. :)

[Nekko Hund]

Beautiful photo of a tricky subject. Your location must have a wealth of cool birds! You've done well with manual focus and even lighting. You've done many things very well here. Kerry's suggestions are all on point. Upon closer inspection, edges are a little jagged and nearly showing a halo. Also, here's an interesting and informative thread about composition:

http://www.birdphotographers.net/for...ional-Examples

Thanks for sharing - looking forward to seeing more of your photos!

[Jeff Cashdollar]

Jeannean,

Welcome,..nice first post,.. this is a strong image the colors looks good, nice sharp detail and the composition is well balanced. Moreover, the subject placement is good. Consider removing a small layer on the bottom up to the twig. This is all subjective but IMO it eliminates a small distraction lets see what others say. This might be a natural vertical image but it looks good either way.

What was distance to the subject? This is a very nice picture showing the beauty of Kingfisher and as Kerry said, a very challenging guy to photograph. You are on the right track using a tripod and especially with a 1/400 shutter speed - very nice field techniques. I really like the clean background and the green color complements the subject. Agree with NR on the background, all in all a sweet shot. The simplicity of the image really makes me pause - really like this one. The frame is well controlled and the image tells a beautiful story - the beauty of nature - well done.

[Jeannean Ryman]

Thank you Nekko and Jeff for the tips and suggestions. I've reworked it with a slightly different crop and less sharpening. I think it looks better now. Appreciate the help!

[Jeannean Ryman]

Jeannean,


What was distance to the subject?

About 20-25 feet. I was standing on a dock at the same level of the bird in a dead tree.

[Jeannean Ryman]

I re-worked the photo with the suggestions and hope this is a little better. My post processing skills aren't that good, so if not, don't be shy about saying so. :)

[Nekko Hund]

Hi Jeannean,

You've made good use of the ETL forum and the suggestions. Do you like the re-worked image? I think it's even better than the original!

[Bob Miller]

Hello...Your repost looks good! very very nice image esp for a first post! Hope to see more of your work!

[Jeannean Ryman]

Hi Jeannean,

You've made good use of the ETL forum and the suggestions. Do you like the re-worked image? I think it's even better than the original!

Thank you Nekko. I do like it better. MUCH better! Thanks all for the excellent suggestions and tips. This kind of help is exactly what I need. :)