Merlin

[DarrenMcKenna]

I think the prey was a Western Meadowlark

Canon 30D
500 f/4 IS + TC 1.4
Shutter Speed: 1/1600
Aperture: f/7.1
ISO: 400
Exposure Program: Manual
Full Frame cropped vertical
1 Hand Held from car

Critique and comments are most welcomed
thanks for looking

[Mike Lentz]

The exposure and BG really stand out on this image! Well so does the bloody prey... gotta love nature. Very good image.

[Alfred Forns]

Graphic image Darren !!! Love the clean look and super bg !!! Might increase contras on the bird just a tad, particularly around the head. Also would like more room around the tail if you have it !!! I like it a lot !!!!

[Jim Poor]

Wow! I like it as is, but I might desaturate the reds by about 10 points; more if I wanted to make it less graphic, but I'm not really bothered by gore.


I'm with Al on boosting contrast on the bird. The way _I_ would do it is to use selective color and boost the blacks in the black and neutrals by up to five points each while using a mask to keep the adjustments where I want them.

[Lana Hays]

Darren
An excellent up close view of a bird that's hard to get near.....and with his meal. I'd give a little more room at least on the bottom for his tail. Well done with this one.

[Doug Brown]

Love the way it's staring you down. Agree about more room at the bottom. Also the eyes look a little soft on my monitor. Thanks for posting!

[Lance Peters]

Awesome shot - agree with the eyes comment

lance

[Maxis Gamez]

Very nice eye contact, BG and very sharp. However, the image is too tight as the tail needs more room.