Blue Jay Mug-Shot

Image Critiques Avian Critiques
1

bluejayportrait
bluejayportrait1500×1200 493 KB

Description: Hoping for a near feeder blue jay photo, this jay sat near the feeder where my oak branch was taped to the metal pole. Not suitable for an entire shot, I cropped for a portrait after controlling the digital noise from the high ISO. The morning was overcast with light snow and was too dark for action photography. I also tweaked up the microcontrast for midtones using David Kingham’s recipe in photoshop. I provided the link in the pertinent details section below. Thanks for looking…Jim

Specific Feedback Requested:

Pertinent technical details or techniques: D850 600mm f4 (1/800 sec at f8.0, ISO 5000) Topaz DeNoise, cropped off 70% to 8x10, levels, micro-contrast adjustment (go to: https://www.exploringexposure.com/blog/post-processing/creating-micro-contrast-in-photoshop/ ).

Is this a composite? (focus stacks or exposure blends are not considered composites) No

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jameszablotny

3 Likes
2

Good head turn and I like the fine feather detail. Personal preference would be to have the background without the snowflakes.

1 Like
3

Great little bird giving you a wonderful over-the-shoulder pose. It looks cold! Beautiful wing patterns.

I don’t mind the snowflakes too much, however, I might consider losing the top most one on the border and the bigger one on the LHS.

1 Like
4

I love portraits and this one works very well, with outstanding detail. The snowflakes are unusual enough that I think I would remove them. I find the composition a little unbalanced and think I would crop from the top and left quite a bit.