Because I have so much to learn about bird photography I went out this afternoon to try and get some more images to work on and have critiqued. It was an overcast day but I felt that helped keep the light even so that I didn't have to work with too heavy a shadow. I would loved to have managed a lower angle but couldn't get any further down the bank. All C & C welcomed.
7D; EF300 IS USM; f9.5; 1/250; ISO1600; HH
I experimented with higher SS and lower apertures but this is where I ended up with this fellow. I do have some more room (not a lot) if you think I've made this too tight a crop.
Crop works for me, I like the reflection. Very good job handling the darks here, not easy to do. There are just a few areas that could use some lightening. The background is a bit distracting and I'm not sure when you chose f/9.5 at 1/250, esp handheld.
Thanks Harshad. Colin, I started out with shutter priority to get my SS up to where I wanted it but somewhere along the line I've fiddled with settings and done this strange thing. I'm not overly worried as I experimented with many settings this afternoon so that I could see what difference it made for me. Some of the other settings were better but the poses not. But I did learn quite a bit.
Last edited by Hilary Hann; 06-22-2010 at 07:25 AM.
Reason: Spelling
Hi Hilary, swans produce such stately poses, and I like the dripping water from the tip of the beak. Im sure this is a black swan, and if so, there seems to be a magenta cast on the blacks. I could be wrong.
You did handle the blacks beautifully. For a bird swimming towards you, I'd say al least 1/320 s/s would preferably to avoid motion blur.
Nice crop and continue, remember practice makes perfect :)
Stuart, there was a considerable magenta cast which I thought I had removed (certainly compared to the original) but looking at it here I would agree that there is still some residue.
Fabs, thanks and I agree with SS note. Yes, I'll keep practising as spring is coming and soon we will have bird subject matter everywhere and I need to be prepared! :D