Western Tanager with prey

[Julie Brown]

Does this image provide any interest despite the lack of eye contact? I kind of like the position of the bug here.:)
Of course I appreciate comments regarding the techs as well.

Canon 40D, 300mm f4L IS, ISO 320, 1/400sec @ f5.0, 0 EV, pattern metering, manual mode, HH

PP: Lightroom 2.6
exposure: set black and white points, fill, highlight recovery, tone curve adjustments
enhance clarity and vibrance
post-crop vignette

Nik software
RAW pre-sharpener
noise reduction
output sharpener

[David Gancarz]

Great capture with the insect, in tough backlit conditions. Good detail on the bird throughout. These are tough guys to find, much less photograph. From a birder's perspective it is a fine image. For birds as art I think the lack of eye contact is a showstopper.

[Allen Sparks]

Hi Julie, this image hold interest to me from a behavioral and birder's standpoint but I agree that the lack of eye contact is a major drawback.

[Julie Brown]

David and Allen, that is pretty much what I was thinking. I'm a novice birder and bird photographer, but I enjoy observing the behavior of the animals I photograph. This was the sharpest of the prey images. The others show the bird consuming the bug. I even have one with eye contact and the tongue visible.:cool:

Thank you for commenting.:)

[Don Lacy]

Hi Julie, Beautiful bird and a nice moment to capture, but tI think this is one of those images that are a reminder of a special time in the field still a valuable image for the photographer.

[Julie Brown]

Thanks Don. That is how I feel about these images too!:)