Fall colors and Bald Eagle

[gail bisson]

This is a shot from last fall that I never got around to posting.Those are salmon remains in his talons.
Canon 1Dx
600mm II
ISO 800
SS 1/2000 at f10
Cropped from landscape orientation.
Minimal PP- crop, levels, DE, USM.
I am on the fence about this one. Will be interested to hear how you feel about it.
Comments and critiques always learned from and appreciated with thanks,
Gail

[Karl Egressy]

Nice up wing pose perfect HA and IQ. I think the vertical crop fits the flight pose very well, Gail. Nice background as well.

[Bill Dix]

The bird is beautiful -- great wing position, IQ, HA. He doesn't stand out from the BG as much as in some of your eagle posts. And I'm not too crazy about the proportions of the crop, although I can see why you chose it. If the original landscape version had more room at the left than the right, I might like it better (with less room top and bottom?)

[Robert Kimbrell]

Hey Gail. Nicely exposed. You did a nice job on creating separation from a difficult background. Beautiful wing position and head angle.

[Juan Carlos Vindas]

Really nice wings up here.
I can see how light really helped you here in getting enough shutter speed. Cool BG also. Eye contact here is great.

[Tobie Schalkwyk]

Beautiful, Gail! Sharp as can be - and the sun adds a nice element to it!

[Grace Scalzo]

I've looked at this a couple times. Three things do bother me. One , I cannot tell what is in the talons. Wish is was either identifiable, or nothing. Two, I don't love the dark background under the face. Wish that the fall colors were consistant. Third, not crazy about the crop….wish for a stronger vertical. This being said….it's still a worthy image…you have just set the bar so very high for yourself and everyone else who photographs eagles.

[gail bisson]

I've looked at this a couple times. Three things do bother me. One , I cannot tell what is in the talons. Wish is was either identifiable, or nothing. Two, I don't love the dark background under the face. Wish that the fall colors were consistant. Third, not crazy about the crop….wish for a stronger vertical. This being said….it's still a worthy image…you have just set the bar so very high for yourself and everyone else who photographs eagles.

Hi Grace,
You have correctly identified the 2 things that bugged me about this image!! The black area under the face and the fact that the stuff in the talons is unidentifiable. I am/was OK with the crop...
Gail

[David Salem]

I agree with your self crit Gail. I like the comp you chose also and the techs are your usual, spot on. The few issues aren't deal breakers in my book. Another sweet eagle frame with nice wing position and great eye contact. Well done Gail.

[Marina Scarr]

The first thing that hit me about this image was the amazing PS work, Gail. You really made the eagle pop off of the screen. I like how the wings mimic the trees in the BG. The fish looks discernible enough to me. What also makes this one work is the slight head turn toward the viewer. This is a solid image.