Pacific Golden Plover - Portrait

[Mark Young]

G'day everyone,

I was hoping to get some feedback on the composition of this image. The full frame image has all of the bird, but nothing below the knee, so I went for a portrait shot here hoping to get some detail in the feathers.

I've done this composition to show off that feather detail, which I've never managed to capture before, but I'm wondering if maybe there was a better way to crop this?

Canon 7D 300f4+1.4tc, ISO400, 1/500, f11, +0.3ec, Av mode, HH
PP: Cropped and USM applied.

[Julie Kenward]

Mark, you've got a beautiful portrait here...nice details and a strong head angle (HA). My suggestion for a crop would be to read the ROT's tutorial that James Shadle has here and recompose your image with the eye near the upper ROT's position on the left.

Let me know if you have any other questions!

[Mark Young]

Thanks Julie, I've checked out the link and will recompose this when I get home tonight.

[Mark Young]

Hi Julie, was this more what you were thinking?

[Dave Leroy]

Very nice image with a ton of sharp detail.

I might make the midtones a bit darker myself.

The crop I would consider is having the eye in the top right third, and the photo would be more a vertical crop than a horizontal crop.

Very well done.

Dave

[Julie Kenward]

Mark, I think this would work with a bit more room top and left. I also like Dave's idea of a crop. Remember that the eye being in a ROT's position is just a guidelines but it usually does make the image feel more balanced. Here I think we need a bit more room for the bird to keep from "bumping" the frame edges.

Really nice detail in this image...very nicely done!

[Mark Young]

Thanks again Dave and Julie. Was this more what you were thinking about?

[Julie Kenward]

I like that one, too, Mark. I think you've got it!