I took this one at dawn last Sunday. There have been 2 of these beauties visiting us recently:
one in Gloucester and this one in Plymouth MA. Hurry to get them before they are gone :)
The tech info:
Nikon D80 2009/01/24 12:17:33.5
Lens: 175-500mm F/4.5-6.3 D
Focal Length: 500mm
Exposure Mode: Programmed Auto
Metering Mode: Multi-Pattern
1/500 sec - F/6.3 Exposure Comp.: -0.7 EV
Sensitivity: ISO 400
White Balance: Color Temp. (5600 K)
AF Mode: AF-C
The crop is not the most happy one I know, but please bear with me.
I'm trying to learn how to clone. There was some food on the right of the bird
that I need to clone away. Any advice on best cloning practices? If requested I can
post the original photo :D
Also I choose this unusual head position to show both eyes.
Please let me know what you think.
I left the white balance at 5600K to catch the pink morning tone.
Any comments on that?
I did Unsharp Mask on a Value layer of HSV Decomposition in GIMP in order to sharpen.
Hi Ilija - Gorgeous bird - I love the early morning light on this one. As presented I would crop the lighter area from the top and run some noise reduction on the background.
IMHO - I am not sure about the decesion to choose this head angle to show both eye's - I think that works best when you have a head only portrait and you can see detail in both eye's - here we cant see any detail in the eyes and they just look like black holes. Generally you try to have the Eye/Beak on the same plane so that both are in focus. There is a lot of info in the education resources forum under the HAP tutorial.
Beautiful image LLija. specially like the soft tones that you've captured during the early morning hours of your outing. Do agree with Lance regarding the white on top. Otherwise I like it vey much.
Congrats
Hi Ilija,
I like your composition...you have soft colors and nice details on your bird...agree with Mr. Peters on his assessment in reference to the top white oof band, its a bit distracting, and takes the attention from your subject...I also would like to see the head turned CCW about one degree so that we can see the eye...looking forward to your next one...:cool:
Hi Llija Gorgeous bird and what a setting !!! Big Congrats !!!!
Cropping wise I would take some of the lighter band at the top but leave a transition to the dark, really looks sharp. Would get a bit of the darker part form the bottom but remember to leave enough room for the virtual feel. Right and left just a little tight but do like it.
For cloning little areas for example a piece of trash, you have several options and all work best for different tasks. Without seeing the are can't say. The patch tool is simple and works most of the time. The ultimate would be using quick mask.
I'm with Lance on the head position, the one shown is about the toughest to deal with, would prefer more sideways and showing only one eye is just fine !!!
Temp wise is a personal decision, as shown looks good. Many times we warm it up just a bit. When doing you workflow it would be the first thing you want to do.
Sharpening wise I have been using smart sharpen and like the results. If you apply in a layer to affect only the desired part is always better. No sense is sharpening digital noise in the bg !! Remember to do the output sharpening at one to one and at the final resolution (always) !!! Excellent image enjoyed watching !!!
Thanks for posting this rare bird; I imagine you were excited to see it. Lots of good advice in this thread; very helpful. Thanks to Lance, Gus and Alfred.
Thank you for the advice. I really appreciate it.
This forum is really incredible, excellently organized.
I'm just amazed how fast and straight to the point advice we get.
My current goal is to learn cloning and that darn noise reduction :o
I work with GIMP not PS so I need to find the appropriate open source
plug-in for noise reduction. GIMP is an open source free software
that comes with LINUX operating system, Windows version however
is also available. Check it out if interested:
Ivory Gull in Plymouth MA
