This is the fourth in my series of Japanese waxwings taken recently at Binjiang Park in a suburban area of the city-province of Shanghai. As part of my commitment to full disclosure, I'm posting the original below.
Device: Nikon D3S
Lens: VR 600mm F/4G
Focal length: 600mm
VR: ON
Aperture: F/5
Shutter Speed: 1/1000
Exposure Mode: Aperture Priority
Exposure Comp.: +0.7EV
Metering: Center-Weighted
ISO Sensitivity: ISO 1000
Love the soft light, muted colors, nice pose, and sharpness. Not sure how you feel about cloning, but I might consider removing the berries behind the perch.
Craig, I really like the pastel colours in this. Super pose, and the reflection in the eye adds interest. If this were mine, I would maybe darken the BG a tad. I feel it will make this pop even more. Another vote for picking the berries.:)
Craig, I agree that the soft light is great here, and I appreciate the post of the original capture too. Having seen it, I think I would have considered a horizontal composition in-camera. Alternatively, though the vertical works well too, I think a horizontal crop in post might have some potential as well. I tend to like negative space in an image, and since the lighting, setting, and subject have an oriental art kind of feel to them I could see a looser composition really working in this situation.