American Oystercatcher Portrait

[gail bisson]

I am not allowed to officially enter the theme this month because I am the judge (as last months winner) but I thought I would post it to participate in the fun!
FYI- I have not commented or opened any of the thumbnails on any theme submissions since I found out I was to be the judge this month.
I want to have a fresh and unbiased look at all before submitting my choices. So if any of you have noticed that I am skipping over your theme images when critiquing, please do not be miffed! There is a reason!
Canon 1Dx 600mm
1/1250 ISO 800 F 7.1 (wish I had been at F9 in hindsight and SS 1/800)
Usual PP and cloned out 2 highlights on the bill and a small spot of dirt.
Comments and critiques always appreciated and learned from with thanks,
Gail

[Satish Ranadive]

Spectacular portrait of beautiful Oystercatcher in beautiful lights. Great IQ.
Absolutely superb colors, details, BG and composition. Love the eye.

Regards,
Satish.

[Raybel Robles]

This is a beauty Gail! Love the warm tone and that the warm light makes the red bill and eye pop even more! Lovely details as well!

[Binu John]

Stunning portrait shot, Gail! Lovely light and details and perfect head angle. The beautiful blue BG makes the subject pop. A top quality shot. Congrats!

[Bill Dix]

Beautiful portrait with great detail and nice comp. Really shows how his bill can pop in good light. (For any who may think it looks oversaturated, it really does look like this.)

[Doug Brown]

Perfect head angle and a really nice exposure with great detail in the darks. I've got no problem with your selected aperture, although f/9 may have improved things slightly.

[Mike Poole]

Excellent sharpness throughout and great light - glad you can't enter this month

[Jonathan Ashton]

Wow that's a peach fine details and super colours - well done.

[John Rowell]

It's been said, beautiful light and colors. Details all look very nice to me. A lovely AOC image.

[Derek_Lauzon]

Terrific portrait shot of an Oystercatcher Gail, the light and BG is perfect.

[William Dickson]

Very nice indeed, all been said above but I really like the eye and bill Fab colours Great work

[Robert Kimbrell]

Nicely exposed Gail. The bill really looks good, I like the way it is almost translucent at the tip, Looks like the light was very nice at this time, well done.

[Marina Scarr]

Looks like one heck of an image to me, Gail. It has terrific light and is full of details. I like the way you've chosen to corp it and how the line of feather goes into the left bottom of the frame.

[Jim Crosswell]

Beautiful image Gail! Great IQ, colours, details, clarity, BG and composition.

[Gerald Kelberg]

The eye and the bill colours are a real knockout! Not to mention the super detail in the blacks.

Looking good! I share Mike Pool's thoughts!

Gerald

[Ritesh Nangare]

Great portrait , with stunning light and details .......

Regds,

[arash_hazeghi]

very nice closeup, love the light, details and colors

well done

[Joseph Przybyla]

Lovely, beautiful light and color. Thank you for sharing.

[David Salem]

I'm glad you're a judge and not in the competition this round because we might all be in trouble again :). That's a pretty sweet shot Gail. The colorful light was cast on the subject perfectly and you're solid techs created a Beautiful portrait. That orange bill and eye look fantastic. Well done.

[Grace Scalzo]

Such photogenic birds and you have done him proud. There is a strange blur across his back and base of his head. Is that just falling out of your dof, or did you catch it with a mask or noise reduction? It looks almost like the start of a halo.

[gail bisson]

Thanks to all for your comments. Always appreciated.
Grace- the blur is on the RAW. It is fallout from the DOF which is why I wish I had been at F9 or 10!
gail

[Eric Dienesch]

Great Details, great Light, Great Shooting Position = Summary: Great Picture :)