Calliope Hummingbird Montana

[Brian Clayton]

My first image post here - really appreciate ANY tips/suggestions/thoughts as I'm trying to take my pics to the next level..no more point & shoots :) I hate the background but love the bird. Thank you.

EOS Rebel T3
ISO 320
f/6.3
1/1000
Canon EF 100-400 f/4.5-5.6 L IS (@400mm)
handhled

PP: Cropped for composition, cloned a blade of grass in left lower that was driving me nuts, added a little color in curves and boosted detail and sharpness in RAW fine tuning. I tried to lower the exposure but but then the bird really gets lost with the background...

[Karl Egressy]

Nice first post, Brian.
The bird looks nice and sharp where it counts.
Yes, the background is busy and the bird is kind of small in the frame.
I would try a vertical crop and a tighter one.

[Linda Dulak]

Nice and sharp image of the hummingbird.

I agree with Karl that cropping to take out some of the foliage on the right would improve the image. That way your eye will focus on the two flowers and the hummingbird.

I'm looking at the two spots in front of the eye and the edge of the beak and wonder if those are ticks? Unusual structures there.

Keep up the good work and look for some areas where the background might be less busy. I like to try to set up with a grassy lawn in the background, if possible.

Linda

[Satish Ranadive]

Brian;
Welcome to BPN !!. Beautiful image of nice bird to start with.
Agree with Karl about composition.
Will you send the Raw to me,if you don't mind.My ID is satishranadive_n@yahoo.com.

Regards,
Satish.

[Daniel Cadieux]

Hey Brian, welcome to BPN!!

Hummingbirds are fairly easy to attract to setups, so that would be one way to take care of the BG. I do think the BG is interesting, but I can understand your feelings on it. It does have great colours and potential texture though so you could use that to setup in front of, but making it more distant so it is blurred better. The IQ on the subject is very good. Exposure and details are excellent, and I dig the wingblur you got here. The comp is not the best it could...pointing your lens more to the left would have been better for subject placement in the frame...I do realize that whatever is just out of the frame may not have been ideal though.

[Brian Clayton]

Thanks so much for all the great feedback - I agree 100% with the comments. I'm really looking forward to getting more involved as a hobby.
Satish, I sent you the file - thanks!
Daniel - on attracting hummers, I agree it's easy (they are all over here in Austin TX) so going to try that too - this one I was chasing while on vacation in MT.
Linda, not sure about the ticks, I don't see them - she did have a spider web on her beak and head in earlier shots (it was a wreck) so maybe leftovers?

Thanks again everyone!

[Marina Scarr]

Big, warm welcome to BPN, Brian, and congrats on getting that first post in!!! Your hummer looks well exposed and sharp, and I like the wing blur you achieved here. What doesn't work so well here is the comp. That said, you are off to a very good start!!!

There is a super tutorial in the educational resources forum on rule of thirds and compositions. I think you would benefit greatly from this tutorial, as I did. http://www.birdphotographers.net/for...ional-Examples

Looking forward to your next post!

[Brian Clayton]

Big, warm welcome to BPN, Brian, and congrats on getting that first post in!!! Your hummer looks well exposed and sharp, and I like the wing blur you achieved here. What doesn't work so well here is the comp. That said, you are off to a very good start!!!

There is a super tutorial in the educational resources forum on rule of thirds and compositions. I think you would benefit greatly from this tutorial, as I did. http://www.birdphotographers.net/for...ional-Examples

Looking forward to your next post!

Thanks and very helpful, I also read a few articles - really appreciate everyone's advice!