Cedar Waxwing

[Mark Schmitt]

The lighting was low, early morning warm light. Only got this one shot of the bird.
Personal nits. Could be a little sharper; the yellows in the tail look a little blown; showing a little contra-shading on the right side, though not too bad.

Location: Tilly Creek Camp-grounds; Kern Co., CA., USA
Conditions: winter/ cold, approx. 28 deg. far.

EXIF
Camera: Canon 30D
Lense: Canon EF 500 IS L / f 4.0
Metering: Partial
Mode: Apeture priority
Exposure: 1/200 @ f 8.0; Fill flash Canon EX 580 gun; -.66 ev comp; -/33 in camera comp
ISO: 320
White bal: custom 5000 K
Monopod

Workflow: Adobe lightroom 1.4 / Adobe CS2 post process

[Cheryl Flory]

I really like that you can see the eye, even though it is in the black area of the face. The background is nice. Can you tone down the highlights of the perch? I think I might crop some off the bottom also. very nice image!

[Judy Lynn Malloch]

Wonderful pose and excellent eye contact. The BG is lovely and my only wish would be as already mentioned the toning down of the highlights on the branch. Otherwise a very lovely image and many thanks for sharing.

[Matthew Studebaker]

Nice detail. Only wish to see a bit more of a head turn/eye contact. Showing off the yellow on the tail is really nice, also I like the composition.

[Ramon M. Casares]

I only wish for a better eye contact and a little better light angle, but other than that, the comp and BG as the bird itself are gorgeous! Congratulations!

[James Salywoda]

I wish you had a little more eye contact but I love the colors and detail Mark. Thanks for sharing.

[Dave Mills]

I think the pose and lighting of the subject are great. I would also tone down the perch a bit...