I love the pose. I would consider going back to raw, selecting the bird and using curves or S/H bring out a little more detail in the dark plumage. then I would reverse the selection and adjust the sky to make it a little darker and bluer.
I have noticed a few people have been using sumac - I haven't heard of this so I looked it up we call it staghorn in UK, I have bought one and placed it near to my garden pond so I hope to get some shots on it soon.
Thank you for your ideas, Jonathan. I will try your ideas, altho the sky as I posted it here is as I saw it. Sumac (staghorn) grows wild here...this was not a set up. It's quite a nice perch, tho, isn't it?
Great sweet light and a nice singing pose, Grace. It is nice you kept the black dark and still had plenty details in it.
The perch is not the typical cattail perch for this species, but none the less it looks good.
Hi Grace, interesting how different folk judge the blacks - different screen settings Well, the blacks look fine to me too, and love the light. The bird is nice and sharp, and good to see the open beak. Cool perch too.