Reddish Egret on the Hunt. Had to sit and wait about 5 minutes for him to feel comfortable with my presence
200-400MM F4, ED,IF,VR Nikkor lens (380MM)
ISO 640
Shutter 1/1250 sec
F8
Manual mode on a Mono Pod
Last edited by Eric Diller; 04-21-2010 at 08:07 PM.
Good sense of motion with the foot up and trailing water. He looks intense.
I might consider a slight midtones curve adjustment on to darken the birds plumage a bit.
The bright reflections in the water are a bit distracting, I know that is how it really was, but I might consider a bit of subtle vignetting of the corners to keep us focused on the bird.
If you have it, I would also prefer just a bit more room in front.
I have gone slightly overboard here, but this is something like I had in mind. Trying to accentuate the bird, tone down the background a bit. You can do a better job on the RAW file.
Just curves and several adjustment layers. Still needs more room in front.
Some good suggestions by Randy, and the repost is a mild improvement. What hurt you most here is the harsh light that gave you very contrasty conditions. I'm finding the water somewhat distracting in the BG. Perhaps a lower angle (if possible) and a wider aperture would have helped with that.
I do like the walking pose, and the film of water running off the foot is very cool. Did you catch this guy "dancing"?