Nikon D3s, Nikkor 600mm, 1.4TC, f5.6, 1/1600, iso 1600, manual, tripod, high overcast, mid Am, local irrigation reservoir, early Sept.. I was well concealed with a throw over blind. Birds in flight opportunities accounted for the relatively high iso. and shutter speed. Post processing included levels, removal of some dark blobs and bright spots in the bg, selective bg noise reduction and selective sharpening of the subject. I particularly like the diagonal line. Negatives include a missing foot, the slimey green muck and the busy bg. The bottom of an irrigation reservoir in late summer is not the rocky coast of New England or the surf swept sands of the Gulf. C & C appreciated.
Hello Gary,
Beautiful detail and I like the low positioning. I also like the diagonal line of the bird and the fact he is feeding, makes it more interesting. Actually the bg doesn't bother me - it's more interesting and doesn't detract from the subject, in my view. The whites are very well exposed with detail. The missing foot, like you say, is a shame, but overall I really like this a lot!
Regards,
Kevin
Greetings. I like the feather detail & the overall composition. You have most of the critique so a couple of deeper comments (perhaps tending toward taste). Looks a little crispy (oversharpened) to me. I think the detail could be brought out a bit better with a contrast curve rather than levels. The eye I think suffers from the black to white contrast that levels won't help with. If it were mine I would add some color contrast between the feathers & the bg (LAB mode curves b channel or warming wb selective on the darker feathers).
I like your field techniques, low profile and nice detail given 600MM and a 1.4 TC. I try and show things from a different perspective and this is a unique look. A brighter more detailed eye would make it stronger. I might take a small slice from the bottom but the foot and background are fine iMO. I guess with the tripod you could not move about and mitigate the spots on the right and opt for different placement (move from the middle). Techs and exposure look good thanks for sharing a nice moment with sharp detail.
This ia a very rare vagrant in Europe (mostly 1st summer juveniles) and it is great to see such an excellent image of an adult in the non-breeding plumage. Well done!
This ia a very rare vagrant in Europe (mostly 1st summer juveniles) and it is great to see such an excellent image of an adult in the non-breeding plumage. Well done!
Michael, thanks for suggesting lab curves adjustment. I have never used it before. I found the lab mode. Where do I go from here?
Gary, you're half way there:
Image-> Mode -> Lab Color
Layer-> New Adjustment Layer -> Curves
Once you get the curves dialog, you will see a box for "Channels" where you can select Lightness, a or b.
Lightness channel is great for all manner of, well, lightness (luminance, brightness) adjustments. Remember, where the curve is steeper than diagonal there is added luminanace contrast, where it is less steep than diagonal there is reduced contrast.
a channel is a magenta-green axis (tint), while b channel is yellow-blue (temperature), you're probably familiar with these axes from white balancing temp/tint.
One good way to make adjustments in the a or b channel is to put a curve anchor point at 0,0 (shades of grey are a = 0, b = 0, so anchoring at 0,0 will not shift neutrals). Then, move the curve up or down to the right or left of center, making s curves or reverse-s curves.
A slight s-curve in b channel (what I'm suggesting for your image) will make the yellower parts of the image more yellow and the bluer parts of the image more blue. This is both in saturation and in hue. In your image the bird & seaweed will become yellower (warmer) and more saturated while the water will become bluer.
For the a & b channels, m and w shaped curves also work (not so with Luminance). A w curve in the b channel for instance would cool the image (both yellows and blues) without altering the neutrals in wb.
Anyway, Lab curves is my favorite tool for working color and luminance.
On you're image I was thinking something like this (just the b channel adjustment):
Don't forget to flatten & return to RGB mode for other pp...
Hope the explanation is clear & it works for you.
Cheers,
-Michael-
Last edited by Michael Gerald-Yamasaki; 11-15-2011 at 10:37 AM.
Reason: one more thing
Thanks Michael, this is above and beyond. I looked forward to experimenting with this new tool. Repost incorperates your suggestion. I toned down the bright spots in the bg a bit. Is this closer to what you had in mind? The image does have more pop. Thanks again.
Looks good to me... You might play around with the black eye for practice. If you work the far left of the Lightness curve you might be able to pull some detail just in the eye, then just blend the eye back.
John Chardine turned me on to Lab curves some time ago... so I'm just passing it on. Glad you found it useful.
SPOTTED SANDPIPER, NONBREEDING
Originally Posted by gary ellwein
