Harold, there are a lot of very knowledgeable people here who can help you with post processing ideas. You will be surprised what a huge difference it will make.
I like the pose here, and that you even caught it with a meal! On my monitor it looks like you did not overexpose the whites. Not an easy thing to accomplish! While I would probably remove the plant which looks like it is stabbing the egret in the neck, I like the red blossoms in the foreground, and that you included some of its habitat in the image.
I am looking forward to seeing more of your images!
mark, there's one small difference between film and digital. digital requires some processing work in order to get the final image you will be looking for!! i see you are shooting with a nikon product. not sure if you got a download code for capture nx when you bought it, but if you did, download it. it is a fairly simple and great program to use!! many people use photoshop cs2 or 3, photoshop elements, lightroom or one of many other post processing programs. i use CNX exclusively and it is somewhat limiting. lots more things you can do with photoshop.
sorry to be so long winded!! will help as much as i can. others around here will chime in soon with lots more info too!!!!
as far as the image you presented, would like to have seen the bird a little more on the left side. gives him room to look into. agree with you on your aperture. would have gone wider. faster shutter speeds at longer focal lengths are a must!! it seems a little dark and with flat light. soft morning or late afternoon sunlight is best!
Glad your posting images Will be seeing results fast !!!
First of all exposure wise its a little under exposed, on cloudy days we normally have to add a little light. Might want to look at your histogram. Framing wise you want always a little more room from the beak to the frame edge than from the rear end to the other edge. Overall I would suggest more room all around since it looks a little tight in frame.
I think if you work the bird he might end up with a clean bg which I would rather have. Do like the pose and behavior. Always a good thing having the bird doing something interesting. The merging vegetation with the tail is best to avoid. Will re post below lightening the image
Almost forgot !!! Do try using a tripod A 500 lens plus the camera mag factor will lead you into trouble hand holding. Also would go at it wide open unless you have plenty of shutter speed.
....btw wrote this before the other comments had been made but did not hit the send button:o
Hi Mark,
Big BPN welcome from the UK! You will find lots of help and good advice from the experts here - like Al's repost a lot. Look forward to seeing more from you!
Regards,
Nicki
Hi Mark,
A super big welcome to our BPN family,
I like your composition. I have nothing to say as far as corrections go; they have been well addressed by Mr. Forns and the rest of the family members. I'm looking forward to seeing more of your creations...:cool:
Thanks for the comments and for reposting it lighter Alfred... very appreciated.
Lesson #1 learned - larger apature on cloudy days. Later in the day I actually (in my ignorance) switched to F7.1 and had tons of great shots of Bitterns, Pelicans, Cranes, you name it, it was a bird photographers dream day only to get home and find that they were all dark. :eek:
I have to learn about the histogram you mentiond Alfred ... Is it on my camera? Would it have told me I was too dark?
My GF has Photoshop (I've never used it) so I'm going to try to do everything you all suggested and repost.
Thanks again.
Last edited by Mark Schack; 09-30-2008 at 01:05 PM.
Motif: Egret Eating
Posting Permissions
