This is another picture I took the same week as the previous Bald Eagle picture but I don't think this one is quite as sharp.
F5.6
1/60
exposure -.67
ISO 400
135 mm
I have readjusted it keeping in mind your comments--more room and lightened the bodies.
This picture has a bit more DOF and now the background is more distracting, but not enough DOF to have the second eagle in focus. Very tricky when the background is so close to the subject! I darkened a bit of the tail feathers of the second eagle to help make the first eagle stand out. If I had moved over a bit that would not have been a problem at all, but the background would have been worse. I'd love to hear your critiques.
You are on the right track and thinking clearly !!!!
For figuring the dof when you have two birds remember at such close range it will be impossible Best to worry about the foreground bird Would try getting the second if in a good complementing position This is not bad Would prefer not having the merge Understand the sometimes impossibility of moving around
Your PS work is looking better Does not look overdone I think we run into trouble by doing more than we should Not sure what the histogram looked like but might have been able to open 1/3 or so more Could have made the breast of the front bird with a hint of detail Opening now could turn to mud !!!!
Ideally having one bird only would have been great and shooting wide open or just one down Give yourself one of each then decide which you like better For real up close with cluttered bg I go for wide open !!! Could also try going wider so we could see what the eagle is looking at Give more space !!!
Work with the bird and get as many possibilities as you can Then at home you will have lots to choose from !!!
Looking good. One option to consider, if you are not opposed, would be to make two images (or more if needed) one with each bird in focus and combine them after the fact.
There are some software packages out there that can do it automatically or you could just add one image to the other in a layer and blend them together.
I think Photomatix will do this, but I'm not sure. Some of the Macro folks use the technique to get better DoF.
another Bald Eagle
