Bobolink

[Ilija Dukovski]

I took this one today at Drumlin Farm in Lincoln MA.
Over-the-shoulder pose seems the perfect one for this bird
since of the plumage action is on its back. CC appreciated.

Nikon D700 300mm+TC14 f/5.6 1/250 Manual + 2/3 ISO400

[Randy Stout]

Ilija:

I agree about the back view being great here. I like the fine white flowers on the bush.

I would be tempted to crop down from above, about 50% of the free space above the bird. It is an attractive background, but I think the bird will show better if larger in the frame.

Cheers

Randy

[Fabs Forns]

What an spectacular setting, very spring like. Over the shoulder works for me, just wish for a bit more detail on the whites of the head. TFS, Ilija :)

[Steve Canuel]

Agree with you on a great pose. Also agree on a little off the top. I like the setting he chose to perch in.

[Danny J Brown]

This is a very nice image. At first I wanted to take a little off the top but to do that you would really need to got to 6 X 4 aspect ratio to keep it from looking boxy and that would cause you to lose some of the flowers around the bird. Therefore, I would just leave it as is, which is very nice as I said before. Well done.

DB

[Michael Zajac]

I like the look back pose. The habitat area is good. I would crop tighter.

[John Ippolito]

Like the over shoulder pose, and cheery bright green setting. I think you can get a bit more detail on the head. Nice one Ilija.

[Jim Fenton]

The overall environment is wonderful here and I like the back with head over the shoulder pose. Perfect sharpness and great eye contact.

I think the whites could be a hair darker (add a little black to them?) and to me, the greens need to be darker as well.

[Stu Bowie]

Good job with the exposure on the blacks, and he really stands out against the foliage. I dont mind the space on top, but would bring in a little from the left.

[Daniel Cadieux]

Beautiful setting and nice pose. Good comp. I'm used to seeing the back of the head as being more buff-yellowish on these guys...you could try experimenting with the sponge tool to selectively saturate this area (soft brush, saturate at 8-10% - repeat if necessary) as there seems to be a bit of colour already showing. I also find there is a bit of a greenish cast on the Bobolink - no doubt caused by the lush surrounding vegetation.

[Kaustubh Deshpande]

Wow....real nice environmental shot. just how it should be. loved the pose and exposure. pretty setting. BG texture is so good here. Thx for sharing.

[Axel Hildebrandt]

Beautiful setting, look-back pose and sharpness. The wide crop works for me. I would be tempted to take the midtones down a notch.

[Ilija Dukovski]

Thank you everyone on the great comments.

I didn't want to tone down the image too much and lose the detail in the blacks.
I agree however that the greens (midtones) should be darkened.

Danny pretty much nailed the problems with the crop.
I could either crop closely and lose the grass stem on the right,
or include it all. I actually have a version of a tighter crop,
so I agree both are OK IMO.

Thanks again.