The Mrs. in late fall

[Dan Busby]

I have literally hundreds of cardinal shots in my collection, most of which should be thrown out. But I don't usually throw any out until I know I have something better. Fortunately this female cooperated on a recent shoot and I had predicted a landing spot and was ready with a pre-selected background of fall colours to compliment the bird. Now I can throw out a few dozen of those old shots. All C&C welcome and appreciated.
Canon Mark IV, 500mm f/4L +1.4x, ISO:400, f/6.3@1/640, EC: +0.3, AP, AI Servo AF, evaluative, Gitzo 3530LS, leveling head, Jobu HDII gimbal. Near FF - cropped branch from left, added canvas to give more room on top.​

[Sachin Saraf]

Dan this is a fantastic capture...Nice HA, beautiful BG which is perfectly complimenting the bird, Good choice on aperture to have enough DOF...Plenty of details on the feathers(Though plumage is not the best)..TFS

[gail bisson]

Simply lovely. Good HA, IQ and feather detail are awesome and lovely perch and complimentary BG.
Gail

[Dan Behm]

Dan,
A real beauty you have here, excellent DOF and head angle, Its great you got her with the crest raised and the IQ is excellent all complimented by a pleasing BG. I find the females often under appreciated but to me there equally as beautiful...

Dan

[Daniel Cadieux]

I love the plump pose and the perfect HA. Messy bill eh! I guess she was feeding on some berries nearby. Excellent BG that you positioned yourself for. I do find the subject a bit large in the frame and wish the small twig branching out didn't curve up and behind the main branch. Super details and techs.

[Joe Senzatimore]

One to keep , for sure. Colors all come together to form a wonderfull image.

[Jim Crosswell]

Beautiful image Dan! I like the pose, perch, IQ and BG.

[Doug Brown]

Fantastic pose and great eye contact. I'm with Daniel on the perch, and to my eye the bird is slightly oversharpened in places.

[Stu Bowie]

Dan, I do like the colours and feather detail, and it is tricky to achieve perfect sharpness with the finer plumage on some species of birds. Having said that, the overall sharpness looks fine from my laptop. I like the thin perch, and the complimentary BG.

[Melissa Groo]

Beautiful job on this missus, Dan. I love the BG and how it complements her lovely muted colors. Wonderful sharpness. Only wish for a bit more room all around.

[Dave Leroy]

Nice to see the full bird in focus. Lovely pose and a really good choice for a complimentary bg. Very well done.

[Jonathan Ashton]

Gorgeous shot, I like the pose and the perch along with complimentary background - one to be proud of!

[Marina Scarr]

Great details you achieved here, Dan. Love the clean BG, HA and colors all work well.

[Dumay de Boulle]

Beautiful detail and the colors of the bird and BG are great...Very nice image!