Perched Osprey - Thoughts on PP

[Kristofer Rowe]

Well this is my second post here and I found the "eager to learn" area (the place I belong). I feel that technically I am doing pretty good as I've only been into photgraphy for a year now. I'm capturing images I could not have dreamed of 4 months ago. My biggest problem is I have spent too much time in other forums and I tend to forget about my images and pixel peep and wonder if my images are "sharp enough". The part I am really struggling with is after the shot. I have tried many programs but feel like I am not getting the results that I want. With this Osprey I converted with view nx2. I turned down the exposure to try to regain some clipped highlights. I used my standard sharpen jpeg setting. I then used a free program that I like called photoscape for leveling and final sharpening (radius 1 level 80%). I have tried LR, capture nx, aftershot, level one..... I do have PSP x4 installed but it is daunting.

I know my gear is limited as I shoot a D90 which doesn't have the best AF, and a Tamron 200-500 which is very good for the price I paid for a consumer super zoom. A 400 or 500mm prime is just not in my budget. This Osprey was at 42 meters or about 125 feet (according to exif). It is shot at 500mm wide open at f6.3, 1/1000th sec, iso 1250. I didn't have a ton of light and I wanted to stop action. So noise is an issue and I have no idea how to selectively remove noise from the background. Any general thoughts tips or advice about anything is always appreciated.

I hope I followed all the rules with the image size and inserted it correctly. I am seriously thinking of joining here as I feel that this wonderful forum is perfect for me! Oh and please ignore the wire on the bottom left some day I will learn how to clone it out!

[Jeff Cashdollar]

Kris,
Welcome and this is a nice post let 's talk in terms of composition, exposure and post production:
Before I get into the critique please visit the Education and Tutorial Forum and consider purchasing two reference books, "Digital Basics" and "The Art of Bird Photography" this is critical instruction and material I reference every month.

Composition - The bird is centered consider the rule of thirds and the image seems a bit tight, maybe more room for the subject to breath. The pose and open wings are powerful and you did well to catch this moment well done.

Exposure - the whites are controlled fairly well maybe a few hot pixels (head and base of wings) but overall you set the exposure for the bright light this is the proper way to approach photographing a large white bird - nice field technique. The distance (125 feet) is pretty far out but maxing the 500MM and a large crop can often make the difference. Assume this was HH and for the distance the detail is nice.

Post processing - IMO you need to develop a workflow. I have a basic work flow, with some flexibility for example. Import to Light RoomIII----> mark pictures for removal--->processes keepers in LRIII and leverage crop, exposure adjustments, color temp, fill light and basic dark/light adjustments. Then I save as TIFF files and work in Photoshop (CS5) with a defined workflow..Levels, curves, selective color and saturation if needed,..then noise reduction,...then size for web,...sharpen,..and save as jpeg. I use a noise reduction and sharpening technique from the CD APTATS II - Advanced Photoshop Technique and Tips Simplified - The routine is "Selective NR and Sharpening". There are many way to develop a consistent and productive flow- Digital Basics is your best option in this regard and the way I learned my processes.

As you have discovered posting and practice are the keys to improving, keep em coming. As you improve and save money you can purchase better equipment but what you have now if fine and the photographer's eye (the most important part) cannot be purchased it is learned.

[Kristofer Rowe]

Hi Jeff, thanks for taking the time to reply. I generally try to work the rules of thirds, I just cropped this one trying to eliminate the 2 ugly wires in the background. I'm not sure if I'm allowed to upload a new version in the same thread or not...

I will try to track down the 2 books you mentioned although the links seem to be broken in the education forum and just pull up a blank page.

I've been working really hard to control the whites on the ospreys. It is very challenging because they inevitably get blown on the head. This is HH, the beautiful thing about the tamron is it is only like 2.5 pounds so it is very manageable. I do have a tripod and a monopod, but always struggle if the birds move quickly so I shoot HH with a high shutter speed.

I have tried to develop a workflow, but one thing I think I do is NR too late in the process. I have read through the tutorial on "layers" on PSP x4 but it is really confusing maybe someday I will figure it out. I haven't figured out exactly what APTATS is either.

Being a chef I never have enough time to practice, but I do generally spend 4-6 hours in the field every day I have off. I'm pretty dedicated to getting better at this. I have many pictures on flickr, some of which I think are really good, but they might be great if I could figure out the PP a bit better.

[Kerry Perkins]

Hi Kristofer, you did a good job of capturing the action! Good comments by Jeff, a workflow that is well thought out and applied will result in better results every time. In my opinion, it is best to do your noise reduction very early in the workflow, as it will make all the other processing easier and lower the size of the file - which makes downstream adjustments go faster and work better (adjustments like contrast and saturation really make noise worse). I agree that this shot is very cramped and I understand your reasons for the crop, but it really makes the bird seem caged in. A bird this big needs room in the frame. One of the hardest concepts to learn (which will make your images much better in the long run) is to consider all the elements in the frame, i.e., the background and foreground as well as the subject. The most amazing capture of the most exotic bird will be ruined by a bunch of twigs in the background or out of focus grass in the foreground. Try to think of each image as a whole, not just a cool bird that you see. Have a look at the images over in Avian to see what I mean. It makes a huge difference! Remember that the camera does not discriminate like the eye does - it sees everything equally.

My best advice to you is to keep working at it, post here often, comment on the images you see posted here, and don't get discouraged! This is not an easy thing we do and it takes practice and adjustments. You have a good eye for the scene and just need to work at the details. Post processing is not trivial, but as Jeff mentioned there are some good resources available from Arthur Morris and also right here on the site so please look around and don't be shy about asking questions and posting images.