Little Bee-eater

[gail bisson]

Canon 1D MKIV
F 4.0 500mm and 1.4X
Iso 640
SS 1/250
f 7.1
On tripod in boat in Botswana
Cropped by 35%
PP. NR, curves,Cloned out branch between feet, decreased magenta cast, dodged black areas in BG, USM on JPEG
Comments and critiques always appreciated and learned from with thanks,
Gail

[gail bisson]

Here is the original

[Joe Senzatimore]

Great job cleaning this up. It was needed, and worth the effort. Love the details and colors. The BG makes it pop. Might just take a bit off the left , but just my own taste. Still loving it.

[Faraaz Abdool]

Excellent bee-eater image, Gail. Good job on the clean-up as well. Stunning colours, lovely blurred BG - overall well composed as well. Great shot!

[Miguel Palaviccini]

Gail,

I think the composition looks great. The background colors are very complimentary of the bird - almost a pastel version of it. Originally, I was going to say to remove the pink/red bg element, but after further consideration I think I like how it matches the pink/red in the tail and eyes.

Miguel

[Stu Bowie]

Hi Gail, a bee-eater I dont have in my files yet. Great eye level perspective, posed on a lovely thin perch, and you nailed the HA in this. Colours spot on, sharp, and Im totally fine with the BG.

[Doug Brown]

The BG is a nice match for your subject. Sharp with good eye contact and a nice perch. I like it.

[David Salem]

Gail, I like this shot allot. The bird is exposed well and is nice and sharp. The varied BG is blurred enough to make it pleasing and the colors complement the bird. I think a vertical might look good too. Good job on the PS work! Nice.

[Marina Scarr]

What a little poser, Gail. You have terrific details and colors here.

[Raymond Lee]

Simply gorgeous! Great composition. A perch to die for. I also like the smooth colourful background, which matches the bird well.

[dankearl]

Great BG color to go with the bird.
Thanks for posting the original, I always like seeing those.
I think a bit looser crop would look nice with the bird lower in the frame.
Beautiful little guy!

[Nick Palmieri]

Real nice job on this little guy. Nice job PP as well.

[Daniel Cadieux]

Good job with this Gail. I like how the subject is sitting in the crook of the "V". Nice details, colours, BG, processing.