Canon 7D, 500mm f/4L, manual, 1/640" @ f/10, ISO 400
Backyard set up and an image I normally would pass on but I couldn't resist a few snaps of this male Northern Cardinal having a drink from the bird bath. Crop is tight below because of the oof lip of the front of the bird bath.
I like the reds on the cardinal, together with the reflection of the water on his belly. I would maybe move him back to the right a tad to get off a central placement, and to blend in the highlights in the BG. Explaining the lip of the bird bath makes the bottom OK for me.
Seeing a cardinal is like meeting an old friend. I miss 'em. Thanks. Your reds are beautiful, and I could live with the shiny streaks across the redbird if I could see more of the water that was casting them. Your f10 gave us a good bit of the tail in focus, but it also makes those waxy green leaves more distinct than perhaps you'd like. Since this is a setup, why don't you work on cleaning up that background? Maybe too think of a way to get shots on the birdbath without the lip.
Craig...this bird garden is a work in progress and the plants haven't matured yet. I have a lot of limitations with this set-up (neighbors house, my house, sun angle, space for everything including the birds, mfd with the lens I use...etc.) Like I said, this is not something I would normally take a picture of but I rarely see Cardinals drink so I said why not when this one was doing it one evening.
Hi Duane, this is a lovely image. I like the detail and red colours in the plumage. Nice cocked head pose and good eye contact. Agree with Stuart re composition and also would like to see the green leaves toned down.