American White Pelicans

[Ian Anderson]

With the oil approaching the Florida coast near my home, I was determined to get out and shoot this weekend at my favorite location, St. Marks NWR. I didn't see any of the usual brown pelicans, but I spotted these three American white pelicans. I'm wondering if you think this image works - (1) is the cropping ok (it's not quite "rule of thirds", it's somewhat centered, etc.)?, and (2) any other feedback is always appreciated.



Settings:
Shooting Mode Aperture-Priority AE
Tv( Shutter Speed ) 1/800
Av( Aperture Value ) 5.6
Metering Mode Evaluative Metering
AE lock ON
Exposure Compensation 0
ISO Speed 200
Lens EF400mm f/5.6L USM
AF Mode AI Servo AF

[Troy Lim]

Ian, nice shot, but i would crop tighter, with 3 subjects, hard to apply the rule of thirds.

[Ian Anderson]

Here's the original, unprocessed:

[Ian Anderson]

Ian, nice shot, but i would crop tighter, with 3 subjects, hard to apply the rule of thirds.

I tried that, but I think I prefer to keep a little bit of the "environment" in the shot. I think the greens and earthtones contrast well with the white birds. Still playing around with it a bit, though.

[denise ippolito]

It feels like it might need a rotation? I like the color punch in the processed image but do feel the comp. is a bit too centered. I actually like the original image w/ the grasses in the BG.

[Stephen Stephen]

Ian I like the three birds as presented for composition. What about cropping some more off the sides and bottom to bring the 3 birds down and make them the center of attention?

[Troy Lim]

Ian I like the three birds as presented for composition. What about cropping some more off the sides and bottom to bring the 3 birds down and make them the center of attention?

Stephen, good try. I would crop the top off even more, just showing the lake.

[Judy Lynn Malloch]

I too like the original showing the grasses as it adds another dimension to this lovely image. Gorgeous lighting and well composed. I agree to off center the subjects just a tad would be good as Denise mentioned. Very lovely !!!

[Ian Anderson]

Hi all, thank you for the great feedback. Denise is right, it was a tad crooked and I like Stephen's crop as well. I think I'm going to tweak the full file and use a crop that fits the format I print it on. Thanks again for everyone's input!