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| Group |
Round |
C/R |
Comment |
Date |
Image |
| 67 |
Mar 24 |
Reply |
I like this crop / composition much better-the bird now has somewhere to fly in to.
The white line may be a sharpening "halo". Seems like a reasonable work-around.
The only time I see a lot of grain like that is when I've increased the exposure in post-processing by a lot, like over 1 stop. I don't know what else could cause it. I looked at some of my Z9 files with ISO as high as 14,400 and don't see this much. Always something to go figure out...
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Mar 17th |
| 67 |
Mar 24 |
Comment |
I live in a place with some decent lightning opportunities in the desert, but have never had the nerve to get out and try to shoot it. This is great information though about how to do it without the use of a trigger.
I love the expanse of the image, telling of the vastness of the landscape. There's lovely shape and detail to the clouds that give more interest than just the lightning itself.
This could also work as an 8x10-ish vertical crop. It would be a different story, one about the strike itself, and less about the vast landscape.
I enjoy your attention to the planning parts of the image. Lots to think about and learn from it. I did look at your image in the other group too. |
Mar 17th |
| 67 |
Mar 24 |
Comment |
Yes a really nice wings-up pose and the food in the beak is a plus- always nice to have a little extra something with a bird in flight. A horizontal crop leaving space for the bird to fly in to would be more pleasing to my eye.
I'm at a loss to understand why the original was so grainy though. My experience with the Z9 is much less grain at that ISO. Are all the frames from that series the same?
But congrats on the flight shot, and good luck with the eagles! |
Mar 17th |
| 67 |
Mar 24 |
Comment |
Antpittas are such cool birds. I've had similar experiences with them in Colombia where they've learned to come to calls in exchange for worms.
They are creatures of very dark environments which makes it technically challenging- you've done a nice job of handling that. I like that you've left the overall tonality of the image a bit darker, since it's fitting for the species.
I'll agree with the crop suggestions already made.
Great bird and a very nice image. |
Mar 17th |
| 67 |
Mar 24 |
Comment |
What a conundrum- I do love that pretty cloud, a shame that color wasn't as prevalent in the clouds around the mountain peaks. That would've presented less of a compositional challenge. I like your crop leaving the lower layer of clouds and color, which helps explain the water color.
I like Larry's brightened up version in that it gives more detail in the scene. That foreground with all the snowy trees comes more to life that way.
A classic scene for good reason, and a treat to see it in the snow like this.
|
Mar 17th |
| 67 |
Mar 24 |
Comment |
Not very often that you find these guys in such a nice, open setting as this. I love that bright green background, it looks so fresh and "spring-y" and complements the colors of the bird quite well. The bird is nice and sharp.
I'm going to take a contrary view to the others in that I rather like the bit of blue at the top. It gives a bit more of a feeling of place than with a completely green background- meaning that there's an "end" to the vegetation. The darker leaf at the right is a minor distraction, you could either clone it or else just crop a bit more from the right (and top to balance it if you like).
Overall this is a delightful image! |
Mar 17th |
| 67 |
Mar 24 |
Reply |
I'll remember that about the sliders! I need to find a good source for doing books- I used to do them but haven't in a long time. |
Mar 11th |
| 67 |
Mar 24 |
Reply |
Thanks for the feedback Larry. I'm always hesitant to over-do on those sliders and had already done quite a bit. I went back and gave them another nudge, and then used the Curve to increase contrast with a standard S curve. I think that curve adjustment had the most impact. Did I take it too far now? |
Mar 6th |
 |
| 67 |
Mar 24 |
Comment |
Oh my Bud, this is the stuff one dreams about having the opportunity for. I am in complete agreement with Larry about deserving of a medal.
I love high key in general. The interaction of the pair, their relative positions, the fact that you have both faces and all the legs, just couldn't be better.
Wow and wow. Print this one big and hang it up. |
Mar 1st |
6 comments - 3 replies for Group 67
|
| 91 |
Mar 24 |
Comment |
Instead of changing the crop for the balance question, how about simply flipping it? Just putting that action at the lower right instead of the lower left already feels more comfortable to me. |
Mar 17th |
 |
| 91 |
Mar 24 |
Comment |
Lucky you to find owls doing something other than sleeping in the daytime! The exposure looks good (light enough). It's pretty well balanced with the background too.
The thing that grabs your attention here is the interaction between the 2. In this view, though, all the broken branches keep catching my eye and drawing me away from the subject. I tried cropping much of the right side of the image, to get rid of the break-points. I think it holds your eye better this way. It's nice that you caught the whole body of the adult but you don't need it to tell the story here. |
Mar 10th |
 |
| 91 |
Mar 24 |
Comment |
Wow that was sure a nice find. What a bright, colorful bird, and a sweet setting for it. Catching it with the grub tells such a good story and adds a lot of interest. I like your square crop, you could go just a bit looser on it and still avoid the distractions. I just personally favor a bit more breathing room in images, but that's taste...
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Mar 10th |
| 91 |
Mar 24 |
Comment |
What a treat to find them in a nice setting, sitting together. I like your timing with their heads facing each other, it keeps your eye moving between their faces and within the frame. The square crop looks great to me, I am finding a lot of times with birds that it just suits better than other choices. Very nicely done and congrats on the quick sale- not surprising!
We have a local young pair (5 year olds) that are banded so we know their ages, and have been giving some nice interactions as they are bonding. |
Mar 10th |
| 91 |
Mar 24 |
Comment |
A handsome bird in a very nice setting, very simple and nicely out-of focus background. I actually like the original composition, as well as both your crop and Bruce's. Different "stories" with the different crops but they all work.
I prefer the color in the original as it is warmer and brighter, the greens look very natural. Guess that is a matter of taste. |
Mar 10th |
| 91 |
Mar 24 |
Comment |
It's pretty cool just to see those red crown feathers let alone get such a nice image with them so prominently displayed. I love the straight-at-you look. Having the little bit of the tail visible is something I like to see in these head-on shots, helps to complete the bird.
The only thing I might do with this is brighten it up just a wee bit, but not much.
Well done on such a flitty little bugger!
|
Mar 10th |
| 91 |
Mar 24 |
Comment |
Nicely timed capture with the wings outstretched and feet dangling as it comes in to a landing. The branch in the beak tells a good story.
The detail in the bird is good and I do like it with the cleaner setting. There's a bit of residual blurry greenery to the left of the head that needs to be cleaned up to complete it :) |
Mar 10th |
7 comments - 0 replies for Group 91
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13 comments - 3 replies Total
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