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| Group |
Round |
C/R |
Comment |
Date |
Image |
| 46 |
Jul 23 |
Reply |
Marylin so sorry for the late reply. I considered removing that 2nd branch and also considered adding the 3rd branch. If you want to read my reply to Xizo for the details of my post processing. Thanks for your comments. |
Jul 29th |
| 46 |
Jul 23 |
Reply |
Maria, so sorry for the late reply. Thanks for the critique, I do appreciate when photographers notice the work put into making and image. I did consider the crop you used. My thought was to get the bird a little closer to the rule of thirds and also a little closer to the viewer. For some unknown reason I decided to leave the 2nd branch in the photo. Thanks again for the comment. |
Jul 29th |
| 46 |
Jul 23 |
Reply |
I will try answering as good as I can. As you can see the final image is a very small portion of the original. I was some distance from the bird and there was quite a distance between the bird and the background. This resulted in the nice blurred or bokeh background. That also made the background nice and clean of any distractions. I think my first adjustment was to the bird. I selected the bird as the subject in Lightroom. You can see the natural light source was from the front left area of the image and highlighted the front white breast of the bird which was facing away from me. I knew I needed to add some light to the birds back to help bring out some detail. What I did not want was to make the bird to light. With the light coming in from the front of the bird it would not look natural to add a lot of light to its back. I increased the exposure just enough to see some detail. While I had the bird selected, I increased the texture, and the clarity very little maybe +13 and an even smaller adjustment to the dehaze slider to help with the detail. The bottom background of the image I thought was too much lighter than the top. I used the Linear Gradient mask on the bottom of the image and darkened it just enough to balance the brightness to help create the mood I was looking for in this image. As for the extra twig below the bird I debated about taking it out but for some reason left it in. I could have been taken out if you wanted. I should mention that I used Topaz AI at the beginning to remove any noise in the image. For me this type of image is all about setting a pleasing mood for the viewer and not so much about showing a highly detailed bird photo. It's about a story being created.
Thanks, Xiao, for you interest in my photo. I hope this answered your question. |
Jul 10th |
| 46 |
Jul 23 |
Reply |
Thanks. I was just passing through and stopped to take a look. I want to go down some day. |
Jul 9th |
| 46 |
Jul 23 |
Reply |
You welcome Jack. I have been to Blue Cypress Lake and know about the many Ospreys there and the other beautiful things. When I was there I found out you need to be in a boat to take advantage of the photo ops. I did not have a boat. Maybe some day. |
Jul 9th |
| 46 |
Jul 23 |
Comment |
Helo Marilyn. I love photographing these guys in their spring plumage. I think you have done a good job with your post work on this guy. Improvements, I think we all can do better, make improvements, but like this image I think a lot of times it comes down to interpretation. I do the same processing when photographing these guys. A lot of my friends are not big fans and that is OK, I like it. It is the only time I will use all back backgrounds and I think it works well when wanting to show case that breath taking breeding plumage these birds are famous for. In fact, most of my images like this come for the Alligator Farm in St Augustine Fl. You can get so close to the birds there and eliminate a lot of the foliage from around the birds. The one thing I do notice in your image is the plumage looks a little worse for ware. Of course, you can't do anything about that. Some of it looks brook or bent and does not have that soft flowing appearance. This bird has really been busy or maybe it was late in the season and the showy feathers are losing their show. I don't see anything wrong with the coloring on the head area of the Egret. If you think there may be a color cast problem, there are a couple of things you can try. Use the Temperature slider or the tent slider and see if that helps. Another thing to try is the color sliders in the HSl panel and see if that helps, I would start with the green slider. |
Jul 9th |
| 46 |
Jul 23 |
Comment |
Xiao this is the best shot I have ever seen of a European Starling. You definitely captured the beauty of the often-overlooked bird. The Starling looks to be Wet but maybe not, but you certainly captured that look. One of the things about this bird that is not appreciated is the fluorescence of its feathers. You really brought out that feature on this guy. I can't see anything I would change about what you have created. The background is clean, and the bird is tack sharp. A wonderful image. |
Jul 9th |
| 46 |
Jul 23 |
Comment |
Hello Jack, quite a capture you have of this Osprey haveing a catfish snack. That is real life and I do not mind seeing it. Some folks would rather not see it even when they know it is the circle of life captured in a photograph. I have not competed in the international events much, but I hear they enjoy more of the environment included in the bird or animal images. Whereas here in the states we are very contented with portraits. I think my experience says that judges here in the states like the tighter shots and not having to judge based on seeing the environmental surroundings is a plus for them. The Osprey and fish are sharp. I think a profile of the scene may have scored a little better. Maybe that was not a possibility for this shot I don't know but the next time it may be something to think about. While the background is muted well it is a little busy with the variation of deep blue coloring. One last thing I see, and it may not be on the original image, but I see some noise that would be easy to remove. I don't know if all my rambling helps but I like the image and living in South Carolina I would not pass up this shot at any time, we have lots of Ospreys. |
Jul 9th |
| 46 |
Jul 23 |
Reply |
Thanks, Jack, for your comments. When talking about backgrounds I like to keep them as clean as possible with no distractions. Can't always have that scenario but I do try. As you can see the Eastern Wood Pewee was very dark to start with and I did lighten it up to see some detail. I do understand about doing more but I am always afraid of going too far with that. There is a thin line between looking right and appearing fake. You are correct I could add a little light but when I get my hands on a slider and can get a little crazy, in this case I tried to control myself. I may try it anyway. Again, thanks for the comments. |
Jul 9th |
| 46 |
Jul 23 |
Comment |
Maria, I really like the image. The composition is good. you have followed rule of thirds by keeping the Gulls on the one third line. Post work of bighting up the image really works well. The Gulls are sharp, and the action between the Gulls adds to the story. I see you have leveled the picture and that really helps. I don't how far away from the birds you were or at what level to them you were when you took the shot, but it also worked. I think it's a really good image. |
Jul 8th |
4 comments - 6 replies for Group 46
|
| 67 |
Jul 23 |
Comment |
Love shooting Pelicans and as has been said they are always better on the wing or sometimes when there are a bunch in one place. This is a very good shot, Bud. The bird is nice and sharp with good detail. I too like the background; it adds a place to the image. Like Larry the shadow line is a little distracting but not much you can do about it.
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Jul 9th |
| 67 |
Jul 23 |
Reply |
Thanks for the comment, Michael. Wildlife is all beautiful and when we can capture it as a memory for it becomes special to us. I think I could tell you about every image in my catalogs without missing a beat, location when where and how. Even my photos of wildlife with not too much of a story to tell are important at least to me. When I am lucky enough to grab one with a great story even better. Maybe I should put it this way. If I have two images of an Osprey, one sitting on a limb and the other flying with a fish in its talons and both are equally matched in quality which one would I enter into a competition. I like them both, one has a better story that the other. It takes a lot of time in the field to get lucky enough to be in the right place at the right time and be there with camera in hand at the special moment. Happy shooting my friend. |
Jul 9th |
| 67 |
Jul 23 |
Comment |
Thanks Larry. I find my journey into photography becoming more and more about the things we have talked about. The story, the moment in time you are capturing. You or I could probably put together a pretty good field guide for birds. At least in our areas of where we live. I still take lots of what I call field guide photos, but they are lacking in anything interesting for me. I need some kind of action or that special moment to satisfy. It doesn't take much but something needs to be different about an image to get me to look at it longer that a second or two. Any Thanks for the complements and instructions. I apricate it. |
Jul 8th |
| 67 |
Jul 23 |
Reply |
Thanks, Cindy, for your comments. I will try a closer crop. I thought about it when I had settled on the story I wanted to tell. Why I didn't go ahead and crop some more is a mystery. As I told Susan I find myself leaning toward keeping the environment in my images. I do see where less distractions could help my story. |
Jul 8th |
| 67 |
Jul 23 |
Reply |
Susan you and I are on the same page when it comes to the environment in photos. I will do everything I can to keep my images as true as possible to what I saw in the viewfinder. By the way you can beat animal cuteness, it's a winner everytime. |
Jul 8th |
| 67 |
Jul 23 |
Reply |
Thanks, Bud, for your comments. It was not to hard tracking these guys because I was on a very nice, raised boardwalk. I
was just glad they stayed as close as they did before running into the swamp because this old man was not going to follow them there. This Swampy Woods is known for a copious number of Cotten Mouths. I have photographed several of them. From the boardwalk I might add. |
Jul 8th |
| 67 |
Jul 23 |
Comment |
Great environmental story and kudos for helping the Yellow Slider out and keeping those nasty blackbirds at bay. You and my wife could be in the same "saving the turtle club" I have stopped several times along the way to let her rescue one crossing the highway. That is what we look for. A story or a moment. Who is going to photograph a turtle in the grass? Well maybe Michael he photographs anything, but one laying eggs, we all would photograph that story. Good Work!
|
Jul 8th |
| 67 |
Jul 23 |
Comment |
This is a WOW picture Cindy. I too usually don't want folks in my landscapes unless they add something to the story that I want to tell with the image. Your redo of the picture adds a needed touch. I will never be able to make that trip but if you go back, I hope it is at a time when no one is there, and you have full ownership of that spot. The images would be outstanding.
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Jul 8th |
| 67 |
Jul 23 |
Comment |
Susan one of my biggest hurdles when I started photography and for a long time after was getting the DOF correct. I was consumed with making sure the light was correct I would always bypass everything else. I sent several bird images in for a critique and many times it came back to me with, the tail is not sharp enough, the wing is out of focus etc. I still don't always get it right, but I try to check my F-stop first thing before the day starts. I always make sure that my f-stop is high enough for what I am shooting. I have been to Coeta Rica once and would love to go back. So many birds, I could not keep up with the hummingbirds, they were everywhere. Just keep shooting. |
Jul 8th |
| 67 |
Jul 23 |
Comment |
Michael, I once took some classes from a man that at one time owned one of if not the largest stock photo company in New York. We were so excited that he would take the time to mess with a bunch of beginners. He had a way of getting his point across to you. This guy had a reputation for being brutality honest when critiquing your images. He would often look at my images and others as well and his first statement to me would be what in the "he-double hockey sticks" were you thinking about when you took that picture? What are you going to do with that thing? I knew then that I had created something special and different. That is what comes to mind when looking at this photo, special and different. I feel like Mr. Steadman wondering why you would take that picture. The photography technical things are all good, nice color/true, Great angle of the Catfish position, great ripples in the water. Ain't this digital thing fun. |
Jul 8th |
6 comments - 4 replies for Group 67
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10 comments - 10 replies Total
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