Eastern Kingbird

[Julie Brown]

Canon 40D, Canon 400mm f5.6L, ISO 800, 1/800sec @ f6.3, Tv, pattern metering, 1 1/3 EV
PP: LR 2.6
about 1/5 crop (subject distance 11.5m)
set black and white points
enhanced clarity and vibrance
post-crop vignette
NIK Sharpener Pro 3.0; NIK Dfine 2.0

[Fabs Forns]

Very nice habitat and light. Vibrant image. Ideally, he would be facing the other way, looking into the picture, but the way the branches are, with the smaller one on the left, it is fine as presented.
Nice HA and eye contact too.

[Grace Scalzo]

Julie, I really like the vertical branches here. They add alot of interest and color. I do not think there is any "rule" about this, but I do not like things touching the edges, so personally I would get rid of the partial leaf on the bottom and the ones on the right (as viewed).

[arash_hazeghi]

very beautiful, nice environment too.

[Julie Brown]

Thanks Fabs. Normally I do not crop this way, but I thought the branches on the right gave the composition balance.:)

Thank you for the comment, Grace. I agree with you on not liking things touching the edge of the frame. Being a novice with the selection brush, I usually don't try to clone out things that touch each other. But here I gave it a go in PSE. This clone job might be a good candidate for the "content aware" feature in CS5, which I just got, but need to learn. :confused: Is this better?

[Julie Brown]

Thank you Arash.

[Kaustubh Deshpande]

Julie, this is very beautiful. nice play of colors. loved the mood a lot. I dont mind the bird looking the other way in this way. Thx for sharing.

[Danny J Brown]

Julie -- This is a unique composition with interesting colors in the flora. I really like this one.

DB

[Grace Scalzo]

Like your modifications alot, Julie, really an interesting image. Let me know how you like cs5.

[Dan Busby]

Very nice colors and nice soft exposure Julie. To add to the other discussion points, personally I would rather see the bird looking the other way. Right now it seems off balance. I think I would also rather see this in a vertical format. But that's just me. This bird has an unusual contemplative expression for a Kingbird (the scientic name Tyrannus tyrannus was given for a good reason!)

[Julie Brown]

Kaustubh and Danny, thanks for the additional comments.
Grace, I will PM you when I have tried some of the new features.
Dan, I wondered if anyone would like a vertical crop better, but I tried that, and it put the bird right in the middle of the frame and chopped into the plant too much. So I went back and did another crop with the bird looking into the frame. I had to clone out a few partial leaves and smooth out the BG a bit. Here is my second repost for comparison.

[Lana Hays]

Julie
Interesting how you can take the same image and come out with so many interesting versions by cropping. Looking at them all....I think I like the original the best. Normally I would have thought by looking at it that it would need more room for him to look into but after seeing that version.....I think the original just seems more "complete". Well done.....and hope you are having a great summer.

[Julie Brown]

Thank you for the comment, Lana. I too, like the original crop as well. It is unconventional, but it has a pleasing quality to me. I have been to Colorado twice this summer! How is your summer going?

[Dan Busby]

Julie - it's great to try these different ideas - that's why we are all here. I think I like the original crop the better than this one. This one, although looking in the "right" direction doesn't seem to work for me. He is sort of looking into nothing. I think if the original had the bird looking the other way it might have worked. But you obviously did a great job with what you had and much of this is just personal leanings - not right or wrong.

[Daniel Cadieux]

I really love the original composition, but on the repost you removed too much at bottom right - only the tiny bit of leaf creeping in in that corner was needed out. Highly appealing image, Julie, congrats!

[Julie Brown]

Dan, this exchange of ideas is instructive for me. I'm glad that you now prefer the original composition. You are right, it is all about our individual perspectives. Thanks for your participation in the discussion.

Daniel, I agree that the second repost has too much empty space. I chose to crop it at this place on the right side so as to not hack through the foliage. Thank you for the comment.

I went back to my image files from this shoot and found only three frames where the bird is looking in the other direction on the same perch. Here is a vertical crop, but the head turn and expression on the bird is not as appealing, IMO.:) I cloned out a couple of leaves touching the frame on the bottom left corner.

[Hendri Venter]

Another vote for the original post. Great setting and image.

[Julie Brown]

Thank you Hendri.