Brown Treecreeper

[Ákos Lumnitzer]

Captured in the Capertee Valley west of Sydney. These birds are so handsome and I adore the plumage detail in particularly the belly and under the tail areas.

30D, 300mm f/4L IS USM + 1.4x, ISO800, HH, f/8, 1/160th, (EC 0), 430EX at -2 or something like that.
Almost full frame.

Not sure how the WB looks, it seemed OK at home, but my work monitor is uncalibrated and shows things hotter than it should so it's hard to tell. I also ran NR on the BG alone and it is still strangely showing. :( Should probably do another round.

All feedback and critique is always appreciated....

[Axel Hildebrandt]

I like the pose, details and BG, I'm not sure I have seen an image of this species before, thanks for sharing. The whites underneath the beak are partially overexposed and I might lower the color temperature a bit and would run NR on the BG.

[Randy Stout]

Akos:

Axel hit the techs. I like the top foot in profile, the fact that the tail area is well shown, since often this type of bird has the tail against the tree as a prop. Very subtle coloration.

Do you know what they eat, since they don't have a typical heavy woodpecker type of bill.

Thanks Akos.

Randy

[Arthur Morris]

Wonderful pose. The feet are killer. Great HA. Looks like they eat insects.

Axel, are there hot pixels? (I thought that a Linear Burn might save the bright areas....)

[Axel Hildebrandt]

Axel, are there hot pixels? (I thought that a Linear Burn might save the bright areas....)

Yes, the area underneath the beak near the BG is a bit hot. I'm sure it can be recovered.

[Arthur Morris]

Thanks Ax. OK, Oshkosh--time to start over and reconvert. Are you using ACR?

[James Salywoda]

A beauty Akos and all the stuff recommended by Axel can be taken care of and fixed improving this already wonderful shot...;)

[Ákos Lumnitzer]

Thanks for the tips and comments guys.

Artie - I do use ACR and have the highlights/shadows clipping things enabled, I probably missed those this time. :( Thanks for pointing out the hot pixels Eagle Eyed Axel. :)

Randy, they are insectivorous with ants being the favorite.

I will rework and repost in a few hours. Hopefully it will be an improvement image quality wise.

[Caroline Darmo]

Super pose on the bird. Love the feet, background and details. I really like the crop, just enough of the tree to add interest yet it doesn't overwhelm the bird. Lovely image.

[Stu Bowie]

Akos, super comp, and love the inquisitive pose. Since there is good markings and colour on the tail, would love to see this guy with his wings open.

[Ákos Lumnitzer]

Here is a repost. I think in the NR process I had the sharpen filter set in Ninja, which is weird. I also tried to tone down the hot patch under the chin a little, but not from RAW. So perhaps I could better it that way.

[Arthur Morris]

While the repost looks better, and it was a nice try, shortcuts are rarely a substitute for proper technique The histogram is still clipped.

Here is an important lesson for everyone: if you have clipped highlights, no amount of darkening or Linear Burning or Multiplying is gonna bring back detail. You need to go back and reconvert. Best yet, all of this is clearly stated in the post on saving the whites in Educational Resources, BPN's most under-utilized Forum.

Consider yourself chastized! (Did I spell that correctly???)

I look forward to an unclipped repost. Make sure that you have your highlight and shadow warnings on. For a guide to ACR conversions, see BAA Bulletin 291 here: http://www.birdsasart.com/bn291.htm

[Rob Drummond]

Great pose Akos, the head turn makes it special.

cheers
Rob

[Ákos Lumnitzer]

While the repost looks better, and it was a nice try, shortcuts are rarely a substitute for proper technique The histogram is still clipped.

Here is an important lesson for everyone: if you have clipped highlights, no amount of darkening or Linear Burning or Multiplying is gonna bring back detail. You need to go back and reconvert. Best yet, all of this is clearly stated in the post on saving the whites in Educational Resources, BPN's most under-utilized Forum.

Consider yourself chastized! (Did I spell that correctly???)

I look forward to an unclipped repost. Make sure that you have your highlight and shadow warnings on. For a guide to ACR conversions, see BAA Bulletin 291 here: http://www.birdsasart.com/bn291.htm

Artie,

Thanks for making that point. You are 100% correct! I should have known better.

[Axel Hildebrandt]

I darkened the midtones and toned down the area underneath the beak more. Of course it would be better to do this in the RAW file since the whites still look quite hot.

[Ákos Lumnitzer]

Thanks Axel. :)

[Ákos Lumnitzer]

Artie and Axel

I redid the lot from RAW. It is better. Thanks for all your help.

[Axel Hildebrandt]

This repost looks much better!