Oh no not you again :)

[Tell Dickinson]

Hi, I posted at BPN about a year ago but due to personal commitments did not have the necessary time to continue, things have now corrected themselves so I thought it time to back back in the swing of things :) I did however have the time to get to your wonderful Bosque Del Apache last December and here is mytake on what I thought were the stars there, Sandhill Cranes :) I just wish the reflection of the head was a bit clearer.

Canon 50D, 500 f4 + x1.4, 1/1600, f6.3, iso400

Be as brutal as you want, I can take it :)

Tell

[Randy Stout]

Tell:

Nice that you were able to return to BPN.
Sandhill cranes are one of my favorites, so always enjoy seeing them.

Your bird is sharp, perfect angle in frame to show off both wings in full down stroke position. I like the nearness of the water. Exposure very good, perhaps just a little hot on the whites of cheek.

The reflection is a bit of a challenge. Because the water wasn't perfectly still, the head is blurry as you noted.
Normally I would crop out most of the reflection in that case. The bird is so close to the water, and the wing reflection is quite sharp, so it did look odd when I tried a trial crop. Your shooting angle was just about perfect to give a great reflection, just undone by the water.

The positioning of the body relative to the background worked out well. I am glad the darker line in the background didn't cut through the body.

So, all in all nice, def. a keeper.
I will be curious what others think of the reflection issue.

Randy

[Mitchell Krog]

Def a keeper if it were mine, nice shot Tell. I like the reflection and comp as is.

[Daniel Cadieux]

I like the reflection, just the face bothers me a bit as already self-noted by Tell. I love the colours and inclusion of the habitat, very nice. Good wing position, and the crane is flying slightly towards you (a good thing!). I would probably tone down the dark line skimming the back.

P.S. Welcome back!! :-)

[Axel Hildebrandt]

Good to see you on the forum again. I like the wing position, details and composition and might blur the BG a bit and I would tone down the whites on the head. Keep them coming!

[Juan Aragonés]

Randy wrote an excellent critic and I agree with most of the things he said. I do not mind about the reflection, the image works fine for me. Another vote for adding a touvh of blur to the BG. Fantastic light BTW

[Kobus Tollig]

I like as is. Well done on this. Great exposure and comp.

[Tell Dickinson]

Thanks for the comments and ideas for improvement guys :) most appreciated :)