I haven't been able to contribute here lately, but hopefully I can get back into the game as I miss receiving feedback on my photos. This is a part of a group of white pelicans located in the Everglades, 10,000 Islands area. I was coming back from a 4-day paddle trip and really didn't have time nor did I arrive at the best time of day when I captured this photo. But, I love capturing these guys, so I took a little detour from the trip.
One of the issues I had was that I was using a prime lens (420mm) and with it, I find it difficult to capture a group of birds, compositionally speaking. (I had to send my new Sony 70-400mm back for repair and am still waiting for a backordered part. :()
The photo is cropped some top and bottom and a little on left and right.
Sony a700, Minolta 300mm/f4 + 1.4TC
1/2000, ISO200, f6.3, eval metering, -1 stop
I applied some sharpening and saturation
I like the relaxed poses, angle and exposure control. If the birds at the left and right side were not clipped, it would be even stronger. I think it needs a tad CW rotation.
I love White Pelicans - this is nice capture. I might crop a little tighter - particularly taking some off the left side. I find the birds on the left to be a bit distracting, and the real focus is the four standing on the right side of the frame. I might also tone down the saturation a little - the yellow and blue seem a little strong.
Excellent feedback and I like the repost Fabs, thanks for that. This is exactly what I was looking for. Capturing a good group composition is tough with a prime without excessive cropping. So this helps me and this weekend I'll be back out there with the gang.
Connie