Backyard Cardinal

[Hazel Grant]

I know this is not an exciting shot, but other than that I'd like some feedback re the overall sharpness, etc. I'm still working on getting the light right, etc. cropped about 20% (?). minor sharpening and sat.
Nikon D40x, 1/4000, f5.6, iso 800, 300mm

[Kerry Perkins]

Hi Hazel, nice composition and framing. It looks like your light was pretty strong here and the image is pretty contrasty for my eye. The color of the bird has gone very orange here, not the nice red that I remember from my southern Indiana home. Another thing to consider is the background, which is just as important as the subject. There is a black stripe, probably part of a chair, going through the bird. This feature draws the eye up and out of the frame, taking attention away from your subject.

[Jeannean Ryman]

Agree with what Kerry said. The cardinal is really orange on my monitor as well. Starting with a cooler white balance would help I think. I'm starting to pay more attention to my backgrounds and sometimes, it just takes a slight movement to the left or right to get a better background. From what I can tell, a slight shift to your right would have taken the chair out of the frame and given you a foliage background instead. For nature shots, foliage is better than a chair. :)

[Jeff Cashdollar]

Great advice objects of this size intersecting the subjects body hurt the image. Remember you are not shooting the bird you are shooting the light. It must be good light for photography,.like early morning or late evening or overcast - keep em coming.

[Miguel Palaviccini]

Gotta agree with the guys above. Be conscious of your background for every image. At 300 mm with the d40x you should be able to make minor movements on your end to make big impacts on the background, especially if you are close to your subject. Also, looking at the exif data, you could have gotten away with 1/1000" at ISO 200 to get a little better quality.

[Hazel Grant]

Thanks everyone. I'll keep working and learning