Wild Turkey Hen

[Joseph Przybyla]

One of my most enjoyable aspect of photography is the memories stored in the images. About a year ago Dottie and I were at a nearby nature reserve. Shortly after entering while walking along a trail this lady came rushing out of the underbrush and tall grass. She was acting to protect chicks hiding in the grass. We took a few images and quietly retreated without causing her undue stress to go back and care for her chick.

Nikon D7000
Nikon 70-300mm F/4.5-5.6 VRII AF shot at 300mm (450mm FFE)
1/500 F/8 ISO 560

[Steve Kaluski]

Hi Joe, cracking detail, but even more enjoyable is to hear you had fun, which is great.

I like the alert look and that beady eye. BKG is not ideal, it's a little busy and bright for me, therefore I might suggest just destaurating it a little, adding a % luminosity adjustment to help with some highlights and then sweep/brush in a little bit of darker green over some of the brightest stems, just so it's not so competing with the subject. You could even add a bit of gaussian blur, but on both counts masking needs to be added, but it does make a difference and take the image up a notch IMHO. Like the depth of detail in the feathers and plumage, likewise the fold of skin along the line of the neck, certainly one bird you would not like to get on the wrong side of.

TFS
Steve

[Doug Brown]

Steve took the words right out of my mouth. You did great with the subject, but your focal length, aperture choice, and relatively close distance between bird and BG resulted in a BG that draws attention away from the bird. Good suggestions by Steve on how to deal with it.

[John Rowell]

Super detail in this portrait, I really like those fine little hair feathers. Nice pose as well. I think this looks very good as it is, previous comments would bring it up a notch. Thanks for sharing your story, it adds to the enjoyment of your shot.

[Grace Scalzo]

What a face! Excellent details. I didn't even notice the background until the men mentioned it as I was so taken in by the bird.

[Joseph Przybyla]

Thank you all for viewing, commenting and suggesting improvements to the image. Steve and Doug I will work on the background using your suggestions, thank you.