African Snipe

[Conrad Bester]

Hi Everyone

This is an older image that I entered into the BAA comp. Again, I would like to learn as much as possible, so please let me know what you think and what bothers you about the image. Would you remove the mud from the beak? Does the burnt grass in the foreground bother the composition? Image quality isn't the best, but any other comments are welcome. Canon 50D, Canon 100-400 @365mm. i/1600, f/6.3, ISO640.

[Arthur Morris]

Hi Conrad, That is quite the pose. The bird does not quite look razor sharp especially around the face. In a perfect world, the bird would have climbed to the top of the rock. I sort of like the burned grasses. The biggest problems along the lower frame-edge are the white blotches, most especially the the large spreading one directly below the bird. It would have been easy to lose all of that with a 60% Clone Stamp (as allowed by the contest rules). Thanks for entering.

[Stu Bowie]

Hi Conrad, Good pose, and I always leave the bills as is, adds interest to where they have been, or what they have just eaten. Comp wise, I would come up from the bottom, halfway between the bottom of the frame and the feet. I do like the browns and blacks in the overall BG.

[Conrad Bester]

Okay, thanks for the feedback, much appreciated :-)

[arash_hazeghi]

I like the pose and sweet light, the FG is a bit distracting and as Artie pointed out IQ isn't great with details looking coarse and crunchy.


TFS