Blue Heron

[Peter Farrell]

From my recent trip to Chincoteague NWR. Sony A700, 70-400G @400mm, late afternoon, Sunny, f6.3, 1/640, iso200, hh. PP in PSE8, darkened and reduced contrast on BG reeds,
cleaned up some stuff in the water. Levels, curves, sharpen bird. A portion of the legs were hot so I cloned in some detail and use the burn and blend tools on them.

[Ben_Sadd]

A good looking heron, nice and sharp and well exposed.

As you have done some, I would consider cleaning up a little more on the water, especially the LRC and the clump dead centre.

In general I like the composition, but would consider giving the legs a little more space.

While the HA is pretty good, ideally I would like the vertical axis passing the eye to be parallel to the image sensor.

Nice work!

[Paul Guris]

Very nice. I actually like the head angle. The face is nicely lit but it's obvious that the bird is on the hunt and looking for food. And I wouldn't have looked twice at the legs unless you mentioned them.

[Julie Kenward]

Peter, I think Ben nailed the critique for me. I do wish the shadows in the reeds weren't quite so dark - if you could lighten those up any more without losing any quality I think it would add to the image.

I also saw the clump dead center right after I made contact with the bird so I'd definitely clone that out.

HA isn't perfect but I agree that it's hunting and so the turn back/down isn't as bad as it could be if it weren't hunting. I do think the eye stands out nicely and definitely grabs my attention. And the characteristic whisp of hair off the top of his head adds a nice touch!

[Paul Guris]

"Whisp of hair?" Just kidding. I use terms like that too, along with other such technical ornithological terms as "wingpits".

[Julie Kenward]

Wingpits? Bawahahahaha...

[BillTyler]

I like the pose, the head angle, and the down-looking eye. This bird is hunting, and it shows. Very sharp and well exposed. I wish the background was a bit more out of focus, but it looks as though your lens was only 1/2 stop away from fully open, so there wasn't much room to decrease depth of field.

Bill

[Mike Wilhelm]

The bird is remarkable. Clear, sharp, good lines. The background is a bit distracting but still a good shot. I love herons. Much of my photo time is spent chasing them. Hard to find, harder to shoot.

[Steve Uffman]

Very nice, I like your shot a great deal. I spent yesterday chasing herons and can appreciate what you have accomplished...clearly the bird is about to eat and your image conveys the concentration that they have to strike at a moments notice at the speed of light.

I understand the suggestions about the background and the floating debris in the water. If you are capturing these birds where they like to eat, that is part of it. I plan to take some of this feedback you have received and work on my images.