Straw-necked Ibis

[Glenn Pure]

Taken at a golf course a short walk from home. My aim was to catch the wonderful metallic sheen on the wing feathers. I've deliberately left the stalk of grass on the right of the frame - I kinda like it. Also left the grass in the bird's bill - a personal choice about not adding or removing elements from my main subject. Sorry if some don't like this. I have lifted shadows on the bird's head and neck but maybe haven't gone far enough? Crop is about two thirds of the frame area.

Technical: Canon 80D with EF 100-400 MkII at 400mm handheld. Manual exposure 1/2000 sec, f7.1, ISO 800. Processed in Canon DPP 4 (digital lens optimiser @ 50, sharpness = 3, crop, lighting adjustments, default NR) then exported 16 bit TIFF to Photoshop Elements with Neat Image NR plugin. Very light NR applied to bird and stronger NR to background. Sharpened in PSE (Sharpness tool) after final size reduction.

[Gemma Watson]

Nice shot. Its feathers seem silky.

[Glennie Passier]

I have be away for a while, and can only drop in occasionally. Being a fellow Aussie, I have been thrilled with the images you are posting of our birds. This one is no exception.

I understand you wish about removing or adding elements to your images. But, I think if you think, your image could stand up to a bigger crop, it would make a very good image better. I may consider taking a slice off the LHS and the top. If you have canvas on the bottom, even better, just to allow a bit more breathing room. The shadows on the neck still look a little choked on the RHS and the under-wing white feathers could do with a little taming. Some will not like the horizontal lines in the BG, but they don't bother me a great deal. An easy fix if you're up for a bit of play.

[Bill Dix]

A great looking bird, and you've caught the iridescence nicely. I agree with Glennie's comments. I'd like to see some more room on the right for the bird to look into, and less on the left. I do find the BG a little distracting but I'm not sure what to suggest. Maybe toning down the brightness or contrast? And the white feathers on the flank do look a bit toasty. That said, thanks for sharing a bird I've never seen (and probably never will).

[William Dickson]

The IQ on the bird look real good Glenn. I don't mind the BG, but I would like to see more canvas on the RHS for the bird to look into, and some of the LHS. Love the feather detail and sheen on the wing. Its one of 'those' images where I find it a wee bit difficult to find the right crop. Great POV.

Will

[Glenn Pure]

Thank you for your comments and insights Glennie, Bill and Will. I have done another crop, toned the bright whites and flattened the background a bit: although I did actually like the mood this background created but understand not all will like it. Not much I can do about the neck. There's no real detail to extract there so I think it's better to leave it fairly dark. Crop was a tricky on as you note Will. I normally start with a bird that is pointing one way but looking the other by putting it centrally first then playing. I wouldn't want to take much more off the left in this crop as the bird when then have nowhere to move into. Hope this repost is a little better.

[Jonathan Ashton]

Oh yes I liked the original but the repost is excellent. You have tamed the background and the details in the bird are quite remarkable.

[Mike Singh]

Nice photo of a striking bird! You got the metallic sheen well on the bird. I would have photographed the bird so that it is on the left of the frame looking to the right. Have you tried a portrait crop?

[Bill Dix]

Repost is much better, to my eye. Nicely done.

[Mike Poole]

Lovely iridescence showing on the wings Glenn. All nits mentioned, and the RP is a big improvement

Mike

[Glennie Passier]

Glenn, you've made a good image sing! Well done.