A Calm Brown Pelican at the Salton Sea State Recreation Area

[Jim Keener]

This one spent some time with me.

Pelicans had a big part of my heart before I knew of Sandhill Cranes. One of the great shows in nature is Brown Pelicans diving for fish. And at the Salton Sea State Recreation Area, they tend to do it about an hour before sunset. The only problem is that the easiest access to the spectacle makes the birds backlit.

I made this in the morning. Just after sunrise. This is another bird I captured after my night on the beach.



ORIGINAL


1DX
Tripod/gimbal
500mm f/4
1.4X TC

1/2000
f/5.6
ISO 400

BBF
Eval metering
AI Servo

Very gentle treatment in LR
H -
S +
W
B -
+ = lighter
- = darker

Changed calibration to Camera Standard

Sharpened in PS: Smart Sharpen

How can I treat this bird better?

[Glennie Passier]

Jim, Beautiful bird. Lovely composition and the early morning colours are gorgeous. Reflection is very nice also. Sorry Jim, I haven't any bright ideas in treating him better. He looks pretty good to me!

[Diane Miller]

I love shooting pelicans and you found a good one here. Lovely water, classic pose with a nice reflection. Looks like good sharpness and detail.

I might take a little off the top -- feels just a bit bottom-heavy. First light is like that, but I'll usually back off the WB just a little, as it can feel like the bird is illuminated with a tungsten flashlight. Difficult balance to decide on, but worth playing with.

Good work!

[Jim Keener]

I thought that this was a good one, but also trusted that you would find a way to help me make it better. I'll play with the WB. Thanks, Diane.

[Diane Miller]

It is a good one! A good one can always be made better. A bad one is hopeless.

[Jim Keener]

You're right, of course, and I know that you can help me make it better. Thanks.

[Steve Kaluski]

Hi Jim, I'm currently away, back tomorrow so viewing on the laptop, not ideal, but I'll chime in with my initial thoughts FWIW.

help me make it better

- The HA to me is looking away (?) not ideal, better if it was towards you.
- Overall the subject looks thin, no real depth, detail or tone which provide 'form' so the subject has shape, that to me is the fundamental issue here
- Highlights look a bit on the edge, but without seeing the RAW it's hard to say, plus it depends on the light
- I like the water and the rippling waves, provides a nice rich backdrop to the subject
- You could crop a fraction off the top, but just move the whole crop down a little more, that simple, the ratio isn't right IMHO

All I did in the RP was apply some Curves to the Midtones, another to the Darks, then a Channel layer via Curves, finally adding some more USM, NOT Smart Sharpen to the subject. Even with limited 256 colours you can start to see more detail within the bill/head. If you want more richness then adding a sliver more Saturation or go via Selective colour and applying a mask.

Jim, colour and how true to life it is, lets pass on that, but extracting more detail from your capture is what you need to look at and is very evident from the OP.

Hope this helps, however it might be pushed a little more that it needs to be, but it's really to illustrate my points.

Cheers
Steve

[Jim Keener]

Thanks for the effort, Steve. I like the sharpening and richer colors.

[Glennie Passier]

I like the repost.

[Jim Keener]

Diane, both you and Steve have suggested a bit more off the top. I was in somehting of a quandary about this crop, thinking it might be better to include more of the reflection than not. And I came down on including it because, thought he gentle waves are nice, the BG is generally, well, plain. I'll work on the crop only, working through these things one at a time. Later. And thanks.

[Jim Keener]

First light is like that, but I'll usually back off the WB just a little, as it can feel like the bird is illuminated with a tungsten flashlight. Difficult balance to decide on, but worth playing with.

I am having difficulty with this. And I think its source is that the raw file is underexposed. My old bugaboo. Hmm. What I thought was a good image is one that I'm concerned that cannot be salvaged.

[Diane Miller]

I like this last crop. And the image can be salvaged. Maybe not to international contest-winning levels, but who needs fame anyway? Just makes people intolerable...

First fix the exposure (I think you did) then have a look at the WB. May not help a lot, but if there is too much of a color cast it compromises detail. May not be the answer here -- just a thought. Or maybe a masked adjustment on the neck-head for just a little more punch there...

The tan and blue color scheme is wonderful!

[Jim Keener]

I like this last crop. And the image can be salvaged. Maybe not to international contest-winning levels, but who needs fame anyway? Just makes people intolerable...

You're so funny. Why am I so resistant to change; to learning? Oh well. I'll get back to work. Thanks.

[Diane Miller]

Truck on... My mission in life is to bug people.