A twist in the tail.......

[Jeni Williams]

Okay - this is a full frame shot similar to the one that I cropped to give a close up posted yesterday.
I have added one of the next sequence underneath - would you enter any of these in a competition - i.e do you think they are good enough?
Thanks so much for opinions.
These are full frame with levels, resizing, sharpening - general and selective done in PP.
Excuse the pun in title!

[Jeni Williams]

Next in sequence.

[Gus Cobos]

The second one in sequence really rocks Jeni, did you punch up the saturation and contrast? :cool:

[denise ippolito]

Agree w/ Gus the second one looks like you added some clarity and contrast and saturation. Neat images and thanks for posting what came next!!

[Lance Peters]

2nd one for me to jeni - did the snake swallow the bird whole:)

[Alfred Forns]

Another vote for the second and Yes I would enter the image !!!! :)

[Julie Kenward]

Definitely go with the second one, Jeni. What an unusual image!

[Harold Davis]

i'll go against the grain and vote for the first one. i just like seeing the snakes head i guess! either way, you should have a winner!!

[Glenn Romain]

Same as M.Davis and yes enter :)

[Jackie Schuknecht]

Like the first Jeni, would just boost contrast and sat a bit more. Great capture.

[William Malacarne]

Jeni

I like the first on best, although they are all good. The reason I chose the first is the facial expression is where its at.

Bill

[Arthur Morris]

Both have their strong points--too close to call for me.... Always best to try with the contests but with the bird's head facing away in both images I would be surprised if either did really well.

[Jeni Williams]

Thank you all so much. Yes, the most frustrating thing was that in the 3 min not once did the bird turn towards me.

[Arthur Morris]

Yes, the most frustrating thing was that in the 3 min not once did the bird turn towards me.

Hi Jeni,

I always go only for an image that will please me and that is usually the best possible image. I would rather come away with nothing than with an image that would not make me happy, i.e., with the bird looking away. That is simply my personal philosophy.

You had two options here. Assuming that you were in a vehicle, moving the vehicle forward while turning to the right (if possible) would have been my first choice and I would have done that within moments after the bird's head remained turned away.

Next option would have been to have made a small squeak or separated some velcro in an effort to get the bird to turn its head towards me. The danger there is that the bird might fly away.... Usually, if the bird stays in the same spot for more than a few moments with prey it is not gonna leave because of a squeak (the key word being "usually."

[Jeni Williams]

Thanks Art, your advice is much appreciated. The chalets were in a circle and the bird landed on the far side alongside the river bank. I was on foot having just completed a 60m "sprint" across the central area. Unfortunately could not move any more to the left so the "squeak" would have had to be the option! Hopefully there will be a next time so I can improve on the composition. Again, thank you for taking the time to give valuable advice.:)

[Arthur Morris]

Hi Jeni, You are most welcome. Always going for the very best image is a personal choice and may not be right for everyone. Lots of folks are happy "just getting a record." I am not