Widgeon portrait

[Grace Scalzo]

I went to Bosque with a group from Long Island. The day we got there, the refuge was closed due to ice, snow, and frigid temps. So a couple of us went to a place in the town of Socorro called "New Mex Tech", a college with a golf course behind it. In the ponds were quite a few tame widgeons. I had gotten separated from my tripod so all my images from that morning were hand held, a real test of my strength.

I wish I had more room at the bottom to move that drop with the sunburst in it up, but I do not.

1/1600, f8, ISO400
Canon1Dmk4, 500 f4

[Doug Brown]

Hi Grace. I like your sharpness and the sunburst in the water droplet. But I find the composition to be unbalanced. The extra room up top accentuates the lack of room at the bottom. Have you considered a tight crop (i.e. head shot) that eliminates the bottom droplet? The water coming off of the bill is pretty cool in its own right, although it doesn't have the starburst effect. I'd also open up the shadows a bit more.

[Grace Scalzo]

Doug, I hadn't considered that as I wanted to find a way to include the starburst drop. But maybe I'm making too much of that one element and ignoring the big pic. Thanks for your input.

[Mike Landwehr]

Grace, I love the variety of colors in your subject, and the colors reflecting from the water go well with the blues and browns of the widgeon. I really like the drop coming off its bill, but the beautiful drop with the star-burst is probably a little too close to the bottom edge to be effective. Very nice head angle.

[dankearl]

I like the drop and would leave it. The IQ looks good enough to just crop tighter, some from the top
And the left. A real close up with a diamond drop.

[Cheryl Arena Molennor]

I love the shot an wouldn't touch the drops. Perhaps a little off the top

[gail bisson]

Well done on the HH! Very nice image and I am on the fence about the starburst water droplet. I would open up the blacks. I would crop in tighter from left and top. Good IQ and you controlled the whites perfectly,
Gail

[RakeshDhareshwar]

The details are just brilliant !! Wish it were mine :) . Not too sure about the compo though ...a little bit wider maybe ??

[Joe Senzatimore]

Grace,
I'm fine with the comp. and detail captured. A bit more detail in the blacks would be nice , but not easy to get. Tough subject to expose for. As to the water drop , I would take it out. As it is , I think it is a bit dis-tracting. If there were more room on the bottom , then I think it would work. But the lack of bottom space makes it a bit too prominent. Just my humble opinion.

[Kaustubh Deshpande]

Grace, Wigeon drakes are not easy to expose. you did well here on the forehead. I just wish you had light striking the bird perfectly for the green to show...Challenges are different when the ducks are so close :-) I'd have prefered a different comp with more room below.

[Grace Scalzo]

Thanks to everyone for your comments. I'll revisit this one someday and see if i can make it work. I'm afraid tho that I got entranced by that droplet and missed the big picture here.