Eric, this is a good capture. It's sharp and I like the leg-up pose. I find the vertical branch in front of the bird distracting and, if it were mine, would consider cloning.
I like this much better, but what do you think? I would now consider bringing him out of dead center by cropping a smidge off from the viewer's right and from the top. I really like this image.
Hi Eric- Nice portrait. You did well to catch the bird looking down at you. Nothing to change here other than moving the subject to the right a little.
Regarding the branch, for educational purposes it's fine to remove to see what could be, but I do not advocate removal of large image elements like this, post-hoc. The branch is as much of the scene as the subject is. The art and craft of wildlife photography is to seize golden opportunities as they present themselves, not to make these opportunities by re-touching the image.
Last edited by John Chardine; 12-21-2012 at 07:26 PM.
Ian, Thank you very much for the suggestions, I do like it with the branch removed and here's a different crop moving the bird more to the right.
John, I do appreciate the advice and this is certainly an educational process for me when it come to re-touching photos to make them more pleasing. It also helps to see what to look for when composing a shot in the field.
Here's the different crop. (the original was full frame)
While I find the last repost the most visually pleasing, I am with John when it comes to removing elements, esp large ones. Environmental elements are a very important part of our images.
Stopping down to f11 would have helped this image a lot; you certainly would have had the shutter speed still to have done it, and would have avoided the out of focus sticks on the perch near the left. Also, it would have sharpened life up, especially since you were using the TC I agree that placing the bird in the right of the frame would help a lot. Also, removing most of the sticks would help even more to create an aesthetically pleasing image. Here is a post by Arthur Morris about bird placement: http://www.birdsasart-blog.com/2012/...d-photography/ I re-read this a lot as it helps me to think better before going shooting. Have a great day!
Last edited by ChrisCallahan; 12-23-2012 at 03:30 PM.
Reason: Fixing the link
I like the repost a lot better. I understand the mixed feelings among photographers about the 'natural' appearance and the pros and cons of removing material from a scene, but this is something we all need to come to terms with and decide our own approach. I don't believe there is one correct answer to this. Some insist on NO manipulation, others allow a great deal. Personally, my mood waffles. I try to remove the least possible to get the pleasing image, but don't insist on purity. I don't add anything to my images, and the pure blue desert sky could sometimes use some clouds.
Great Blue Heron
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