I shot this Marbled Godwit a couple of falls ago at my local "patch" in New Haven, CT. This was a bird that was quite photographable and one evening it was silhouetted against the setting sun and allowed me to get a few exposures that I optimized with Photoshop to get the colors a little more contrasting. I like the water around the legs and the splashes add a bit of "action", though I'd have maybe preferred them in focus.
Stunning shot, Julian, and great shooting angle. Love the foreground texture and color of BKG light. Splashing water around feet and legs a plus. Not a fan of the water droplets on left side and black dot under bird's breast.
Hi Julian, I like this silhouette. I find the splash and water drops to be interesting. The orange background lighting is nice. The silhouette edge is sharp. I like the light that shows through the beak. I might crop a bit from the bottom to just above the water at the bottom. I do like it as presented.
Hi Julian, another vote in favor of the background. WHen I saw the thumbnail I thought I'd end up finding it distracting but instead it adds context and makes the image a little more dynamic than if it just had an all-orange background.
Another nice one. I played with the drops a bit to see if I could selectively sharpen them. The area around the legs came out OK, but the large splash straight down from the tip of the bill didn't respond in a graceful manner to my ministrations.