Red-shouldered Hawk

[Michael Yessik]

To me a classic pose. I can see that the light is a little harsh, but I like the detail and the colors.
What do you think?

[Desmond Chan]

I think you could get more details if you burn and sharpen it a bit those light color feathers around the eye.

[Doug Brown]

You've got a nice pose and good sharpness. The angle is a bit steep and the sky is oversaturated. The light is harsh, as you said, but that can be dealt with in PS. Here's a repost. I desaturated the sky, cleaned up the BG a little, minimized the shadow in the eye, and tried to tone down the harsh light. What do you think?

[Michael Yessik]

Wow, that's much better. I know how to desaturate the sky, but can you elaborate on how you toned down the harsh light, minimized the shadow, and cleaned up the BG? I'd like to learn how to do that.

Thanks.

[Michael Yessik]

I toned it down quite a bit I believe and I like it much better.

[George DeCamp]

Good job Michael, way better!!!

[Alfred Forns]

I think you are 100 % right Michael !!! Tough with the harsh light Would also like a lower viewing angle.

For making a significant difference here you will need to do a double conversion one being linear. Lots of work and rewards !!!

[Gus Cobos]

I like your repost Michael...:cool:

[Doug Brown]

Seems like you figured out how to do it by yourself Michael! I desaturated the sky. Then I tried to even out the exposure by doing a little burning and creating new layers from a couple of hot spots on the bird. I used the Multiply option for Blend, and changed the layer opacity to achieve the desire effect. I also removed some of the shadow in the iris of the bird's eye. Lastly I sampled the color of the sky and painted that color over the OOF areas at the bottom of the image.

[Michael Yessik]

Thanks, that's very helpful, as I am trying very hard to learn Photoshop, but am still a novice.