Juvenile Male Northern Cardinal

[Joel Eade]

Backyard setup
1D3
300mm 2.8L Version I + 1.4TC II
Tripod
580 EXII + better beamer at 1/4 power
2 remote 430 EXII flashes at 1/16 power triggered with pocket wizards
Iso 1000
f/4.5
1/500 sec

Removed extra catchlights and some specular highlights in the BG.

[Kerry Perkins]

Hi Joel, excellent overall image with nicely controlled reds. Looks like this little rascal is in his first molt. I feel that the perch is a bit overwhelming. It takes up more space in the frame than the bird. My eyes are working overtime trying to make more detail in the image, maybe just a tad more sharpening. On the other hand, I do have that postcard from my optometrist...

[Joel Eade]

Repsot with slight sharpening. I agree about the perch...just can't seem to get the small birds to stay off my woodpecker setup

[Jeff Cashdollar]

Joel,

Repost is better, beautiful image. I love the Cardinals. Kerry hit the main points, placement could be a point of debate. Maybe move subject out of the middle to the right. Subject stuff, lets see what other say. On balance, I like the picture and the additional sharpening made it stronger. Thanks for posting, keep count of your backyard species - what a great yard!

ps,..nice use of lighting techniques. This can be challenging and you have done well with this image.