Downey woodpecker on sapling

[Grace Scalzo]

I made this image early this morning in a woods near my home. Sunlight broke thru the woods and lit up this tree, and luckily he perched there for three frames. The sapling grew at about a 60 degree angle to the ground, and the woodpecker hanging off it was not pleasing, so I rotated the canvas, cropped, etc. Not sure about the body position, I like that you can see his back, but perhaps it feels too much so?

Thanks for looking and for your comments.

1/640, f6.3, ISO400
1Dmk2n, 500 + 1.4tc + tripod

[Arthur Morris]

Nice meeting you at PFLI. Well done but for head angle, head angle, head angle. You guys all need to learn to watch for a good head angle before pressing the shutter button.... It is one rule that is very hard to break successfully... The focus is sharpest on the side of the bird so that the head is a bit soft as is. If the bird had turned its head towards you a bit, it too would have been sharp...

[Grace Scalzo]

So you didn't like the head angle? :) Thanks, I hear you and will work on this. Nice meeting you, too.....

[Arthur Morris]

So you didn't like the head angle? :) Thanks, I hear you and will work on this. Nice meeting you, too.....

It's not a question of me liking or not liking it. When the bird is facing away as it is in this image, lots of problems arise: no intimacy, no eye contact, unsharpness of the face, poor light on the face, etc. etc. etc....