The photographer is looking for thoughtful feedback on the image as a whole, especially around the areas noted below.
Feedback Focus: Artistic + Technical
About This Image
One from mid-May that I just now processed. These guys are so common here I rarely shoot them – and I would usually prefer to shoot them with a pea-shooter as they hog the feeders and perches. But something about this one caught my eye. The bird is in open shade and I liked the blue tint from the sky so left it as it was.
Feedback Requested
All comments welcome!
Technical Details
Camera: Canon EOS R5
Lens: RF100-500mm F4.5-7.1 L IS USM + EXTENDER RF1.4x
Focal length: 631mm
Shutter speed: 1/250s
Aperture: f/9.5
ISO: 1600
Minimal global tonal work in LR and denoise. Into PS for some work on the BG, to remove an OOF branch on the left and part of a feeder on the right. Added a bit to the bottom as I just barely caught the tail. Cropped from the sides.
I love your woodpeckers! Isn’t funny; your common, pesky birds are a real treat for me. And ours are appealing to you. This one has given you that classical over-shoulder pose. Wonderful detail in his/her feathers. I like the blue sheen.
This really shows woodpecker specialization - from that beak to those tail feathers and the feet in between. Really amazing creatures they are and so entertaining. I like the blue reflection here, too, and your background is (as always) to die for. Lickable light too. What’s not to love? Oh yeah, the gate-crasher behavior. There is that.
Glenys, this is a he. The girls have a stripe of black for about the front third of his red cap. In a departure from most species, the fledglings look more like males ,with an all-red cap, and the white/pink part of the eye is dark blue-gray. And as nearly as I can tell, they are born with an attitude. I was lucky to photograph three emerge from their nest hole several years ago. They didn’t fly straight out like the Bluebirds do, but cautiously branched. They had seemed peaceful enough as they took turns poking their heads out of the hole (I couldn’t tell how many there were) but once outside they immediately began trying to kill one another. It was surprising and a little scary.
Thanks, @Huw_Thomas and @Allen_Sparks ! These guys are a nuisance, but a fun nuisance. This year for whatever reason, the Orioles got braver with them and managed to get some jelly. Even the Oak Titmice are starting to discover it.
