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| Group |
Round |
C/R |
Comment |
Date |
Image |
| 67 |
Jun 19 |
Reply |
Thanks, Todd. The rose pedal colors came out more muted than I intended, perhaps because of the reduced file size (?). At least, I didn't have to worry about the katydid jumping off - it stuck around on that flower for about three days! And I filled many frames. And I agree with you and others re the white background. Next round of editing! |
Jul 1st |
| 67 |
Jun 19 |
Reply |
Thanks, Todd. The rose pedal colors came out more muted than I intended, perhaps because of the reduced file size (?). At least, I didn't have to worry about the katydid jumping off - it stuck around on that flower for about three days! And I filled many frames. And I agree with you and others re the white background. Next round of editing! |
Jun 30th |
| 67 |
Jun 19 |
Reply |
Thanks for your comments, Cheryl. I was thinking of you when I recently visited Yellowstone, especially hiking around the Prismatic Ponds. Unfortunately, the day that I visited was clod, cloudy and windy (in mid-June). The cold air on the hot-water geyser ponds only increased the density of the steam, which clouded the shooting. In this case, I was hoping for good winds to blow away the steam! I got a few decent shots and perhaps I'll put them up in future submissions. |
Jun 30th |
| 67 |
Jun 19 |
Reply |
Thanks for the tips, Larry. Your suggestion of using a flash would solve the high ISO problem. I don't think of flash for bright daylight, but I can see the value of a fill-flash for a shot like this. Happy travels! |
Jun 30th |
| 67 |
Jun 19 |
Comment |
Hi Todd - greetings and welcome. I may be the last one to add comments, but I just got back from nearly two weeks in Yellowstone and Grand Teton NPs. I brought back lots of images and a bad cold, so I am now just re-emerging. I am envious of your access to bald eagles and other wildlife near your home. I'll look forward to other images that you have. Your submission does show a regal perch. I am very much a learner here and I made note of Larry's detailed critique of your image. I too rely on hand-held shooting using a telephoto and I pay the price for doing so. Beyond what Larry and others have offered, my only suggestion would be increasing the contrast in the tree branches and brightening the yellow color value of the flowers. More contrast and brighter flowers might compete with your back-lit eagle, but maybe some tighter cropping would reduce the background noise (assuming you move the bird to the right). Either way, I enjoyed your image and look forward to more of them! |
Jun 30th |
| 67 |
Jun 19 |
Reply |
300 steps - no problem! I'll see if the youngin's in my group (they're in their 60s) will be able to keep up. Thanks for the tip!! |
Jun 13th |
| 67 |
Jun 19 |
Reply |
Thanks, Madhusudhan. About including the full antenna, you're right that I was going for the body detail of the katydid/cricket, which meant the ends of the antennae were lopped off. But another reason for the partial antennae was that when shooting hand-held, I often don't notice the periphery of the image since I am so intent on trying to capture a reasonable composition for the main subject focal-point. Said differently, when framing the shot, I didn't notice that I had omitted the ends of the antennae. But if I was taking the shot again, I would still give emphasis to the body of the visiting critter - although the better option would be to take several images at different focal lengths. Lessons learned!
And about the white background, I tried reducing its brightness by a slight vignette, but I think this had the effect of muddying the yellow base of the rose. I might have been better using a graduated density filter in LR on the white-spots without the vignette. |
Jun 13th |
| 67 |
Jun 19 |
Reply |
My source of expertise was some random website discovered by Google. We have woodpeckers in our neighborhood and spring is always announced by them thumping on hollow tree branches (presumably for the acoustics). I thought they were looking for breakfast, but the real motive may be to play their love drums - Richard's reference, not mine! ;) |
Jun 13th |
| 67 |
Jun 19 |
Reply |
Love drums - ha! Thanks for the new word-idea! |
Jun 13th |
| 67 |
Jun 19 |
Reply |
Thanks for the feedback, Richard. I was trying to walk the fine line between under- and over-saturation of the colors. In my original rending of the RAW file, the yellow center came out much brighter, but the yellow core appears more muted in this scaled-down version. I was trying to make it look like the katydid was staring down into a fiery abyss. While that's my imagination working on this photo, in fact, the katydid ate the abyss! |
Jun 12th |
| 67 |
Jun 19 |
Reply |
Michael, thanks for identifying our visitor as a katydid. I searched the web to identify it, so having the correct ID is helpful! You've made an interesting point by suggesting a look that is "artsy" vs. "naturesy" (great word, BTW). Your distinction reminds me of how many ways a photo can be rendered for different effects. You've encouraged me to try different presentations, which I shall try! |
Jun 12th |
| 67 |
Jun 19 |
Comment |
Great capture of a female cardinal in a moment of defense against the cold and snow. You cropped a lot, but you've got good detail in the bird's face, so it works for me. I wonder if lowering the highlights slider in LR could have brought out more detail in the bird's lower breast? You also did well shooting through a window pane and avoiding the glare that windows can bring. My wife has several bird feeders that attract many cardinals (and which we shoot through our windows). It's always fun to see the females, with their more subtle colors, take their turn at the feeders. |
Jun 12th |
| 67 |
Jun 19 |
Comment |
The simplicity of this photo is elegant. I agree with your cropping to keep the image clean and uncluttered. And as noted by Michael and Richard, the background coloring couldn't be better. In fact, I'll ask: what is that featureless background? It's a nice story that your lady bush chat finally settled down and relaxed for your shot - although it's clear she was keeping an eye on you! Nice image! |
Jun 12th |
| 67 |
Jun 19 |
Comment |
An unusual woodpecker pose, indeed! Like Michael, I'm impressed that you observed the bird long enough to anticipate its next position. Getting the right angle and pose from a bird subject takes infinite patience - and cunning. I like the cropping and the colors are good. The red head is very red, but after all, it's a woodpecker whose trademark is red head, so it works for me. I agree that lightening up the shadows on the bird's breast would enhance the photo.
This story has nothing to do with your photo, but seeing your woodpecker doing something unusual reminds me of staying with friends in FL and being awoken early one morning with a very loud rat-a-tat-tat. It took a while to figure out the source, which was a woodpecker tapping rapidly on a rain gutter outside our bedroom. Thanks to Google, my wife learned that the rapid-fire tapping by a woodpecker (usually on a hollow tree limb) is a mating ritual, and the prize goes to the woodpecker who makes the biggest noise. And that's what woke us up early for several mornings during our stay! I wish that woodpecker guy luck. All animals are interesting, but each is interesting in its own way. |
Jun 12th |
| 67 |
Jun 19 |
Comment |
Larry, you did it again! This is a really skillfully crafted image. The dynamic range of contrast is remarkable for the detail you got in the highlights and shadows. I agree with Richard that he forest detail adds to the rendition. Going full-silhouette would have been a good option, but the forest detail makes this sunset shot really jump out.
I'm leaving soon for two weeks in Yellowstone and Grand Teton. I'll keep you photo in mind for inspiration! |
Jun 12th |
| 67 |
Jun 19 |
Comment |
What a wonderful moment to capture! You scored a photo hat-trick: unusual lizard (by my standards, at least), mating, and with mosquito in tow. I'm not sure I would have seen the mosquito if you didn't point it out. To me, it's a nice shot made under tough composition conditions. You've cleaned up the noise of a high ISO through post-processing. The detail is good and the DOF is just right. You remind me that I need to experiment with Topaz. I downloaded one module that didn't do what I had hoped (increase detail) and I'm thinking of the $$ associated with each new module to try. Between LR and PS, I'm not sure what Topaz adds, but I should at least play with it. However you went about getting your results, you did a great job. |
Jun 12th |
6 comments - 10 replies for Group 67
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6 comments - 10 replies Total
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