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Thread: Stare Down

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    Default Stare Down

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    A different pose from my previous post; this egret is captive bird in the 1904 Aviary at the St. Louis Zoo. RAW image processed in LR; 400mm, f/5.6@1/4000. I extended the canvas a bit on the top and on the LHS; brought up the saturation on the lores a bit. Cloned out some distracting dark lines in the BG. Used Fractalius on a separate layer...changed the blend mode on that layer to Multiply...then lowered the opacity on the layer to allow a bit of additional detail show through. I need to credit Andrew McLachlan for inspiration here...his application of Fractalius on various images pushed me toward trying a similar style on this image...thanks to Denise as well for a previous tip on trying out various blend modes. Good stuff on both accounts.

    This particular egret has a soft spot in my heart. She was brought to the St. Louis Zoo having lost an eye to an idiot with a pellet gun; she is very skittish, even after two years in the aviary, because she has such a limited field of vision. If you are patient, quiet and still...anticipating her movement and just waiting for her to come to you...she's an extraordinarily beautiful bird...I might just feel that way because of what she's endured, but she does strike me as having a gentle personality. Touches me every time.

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    John, I love the composition and the filtering. Something different from you! The background is lovely. I might blend that little dark area by the top of the bill before print if it were mine. A touch more luminosity in the eye... maybe? Nice work.

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    Denise, as always, I appreciate your comments and suggestions. Did some blending around the bill to give more separation and depth...gave the eye a bit more pop...your suggestions were spot on!

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    Looks great!

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    Wonderful story and effect, John! The repost looks great.

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    Denise and Indranil, thank you for your comments...I added one more touch...running the image through the Topaz/Simplify/Buzzsim (I masked the background first)...just to soften the image a bit. It will be interesting to see which version strikes a chord with people.

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    BPN Member Kerry Perkins's Avatar
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    Hi John, nice work with the image and I always appreciate a story to go along with it. I'm voting for the second image (first repost), as I like the balance of detail and softness of that one. Nice job with Fractalius, looks great.
    "It is an illusion that photos are made with the camera... they are made with the eye, heart, and head." - Henri Cartier Bresson

    Please visit me on the web at http://kerryperkinsphotography.com


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    Beautiful work on the egret John! The first repost is my favorite as I like the added detail and color better. Egrets are one of my favorite birds. I don't have any shots that close but I have some that are full frame for the whole bird. The ones that aren't spooky are few and far between in the wild.

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    Thank you, Judy and Kerry. Kerry, at some point I'll have to post an image of Louise...an injured cormorant that lives in the aviary...and share her story. Louise has the most personality of any bird I've ever met..and to this day brings a smile to my face!

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    Agree with the rest, the first repost does it for me.

  11. #11
    Landscapes Moderator Andrew McLachlan's Avatar
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    Hi John, love the repost in pane #6. Beautiful work!

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    Andrew and Fred (and all)...thank you for your comments!

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