Sony A850~Sony 70-400G@300mm~ISO 3200~1/800 sec~F6.3~manual exposure~HH~overcast~1-14-2011~Houston, Texas~CS5
My favorite anhinga again.
On a relatively close subject framing decisions can become difficult and multiple possibilies can work. Here I dropped from 400 to 300mm with a vertical orientation and cropped from the top in PP. I often am not sure what is best.
I am also hesistant on working on backgrounds, other than NR. Here I left the dark areas as they were and I find it acceptable. But thats just me. Any other opinions? Comments and critique welcomed. regards~Bill
Hey Bill, I see a few things you might consider. First, I don't mind a light/dark BG as long as its well diffused and doesn't detract from the subject of the image. In many cases, it actually adds a textural interest. That said, I'm not sure that I like the darkest area being right behind the bird's head in this image - especially since it's right at eye level. If this were mine, I'd probably grab the BG color and do a soft wash over the top to tone it down a bit more, leaving just a hint of color like the patches on the right side.
As far as the comp, the HA feels a tiny bit off. If it were turned just a bit more to the right I think it would feel more impressive, although I admit that eye staring you down is pretty powerful! Also from a crop/comp standpoint I wish the bottom of the frame didn't cut so close to the "v" of the bird's neck. Having a little more room down at the bottom might help keep the eye within the frame better.
Lastly, great job on the darks of the head and neck and the top of the wings but the underwings really lose detail here. I'm not sure it is the aperture or the exposure (or both) that made this part of the image lose it's detail but it really stands out in comparison to how sharp and beautiful the rest of the image is.
Julie; I appreciate the comprehensive critique. Critique on the critique: good job!
As far as the background; I agree. Same with the cropping at the bottom.
Now a bit about head angle, and not that I disagree with your point, but more relating to my general attitude of the subject. The head angle here is something I can live with, and as often is in photography somewhat of a compromise. The extended throat pouch is displayed only when the bird is threatened. Since the bird didn't fly off he wasn't that threatened, and the pouch is a useful indicator that you need to back off. In any case its inclusion, since relatively infrequently observed, is worth HA deviation. Also a problem with achieving a proper head angle is that it can place the bill tip outside the DOF, especially with birds with long bills. Of course increasing the depth of field to compensate would be called for, but there are times(as was here) that increasing DOF is not an option, since increasing ISO or decreasing SS that would become necessary can have negative effects on image quality that out weigh HA considerations. So is it better to have a head angle a bit off the ideal, or a bill tip OOF? I think the head angle off a bit is better.
The lack of detail under the wing is another DOF limitation since the surface extends behind the subject. I don't think anything could be done in camera to take care of the problem, and I would have to rely on post-processing to lighten the area and increase detail. Detail could not be fully restored of course , but lightening and restoring some detail could make it more consistent with the rest of the image. regards~Bill
Male Anhinga #2
