A small flock of Waxwings visited my yard recently and were particularly interested in the Rusty Blackhaw viburnum berries.
(If backgrounds have been removed, etc. please be honest with your techniques to help others learn)
Even though this is a fairly busy image, the bird is well framed by its environment. I might clone away the out of focus branch just above its head. Not much you can do about the shadows.
Yeah, I didnât care for the shadows, either but didnât know what to do about them. Thanks, David.
Open the raw file (actual raw, no adjustments) in the ACR version that comes with PSE, and try opening up shadows with the Shadows slider (moved right). It will reduce the high contrast everywhere and will probably give you a more pleasing image. The Highlights slider (moved left) might be able to recover some of the white on the breast. The microscopic level of âsharpeningâ is probably not going to find enough detail to work with but a touch of Clarity, if you have it in that version of ACR, will bring back some midtone contrast if the shadows slider makes things look too flat. Iâd love to see where you can go with that approach.
Thanks, Diane. Iâll give it a try and repost.
Repost, incorporating Dianeâs thoughts. I also tried a different crop in an effort to eliminate some of those heavy shadows.
Nice shot of the waxwing in its normal surroundings. The dark branches do form a frame and while the rest of the image can be mellowed out, I suspect that theyâre at 0,0,0 on the exposure scale, so adjustments arenât going to have much effect. I think your repost does a pretty good job of minimizing their effect and itâs a pleasing composition.
Thanks, Dennis. I appreciate your insights and comments.
Sometimes these birds just occupy busy places. You did a nice job in framing the waxwing with the branches and berries. Small white or bright areas on birds are always tough also and easy to have a slight over exposure. I am constantly checking my histogram on back of camera for blinkies. Nice focus on the bird and eye area is nice and sharp. Well done with the berry in mouth.
Thanks, David. It was a bit of a tricky shot, but I liked the behavior well enough to try to save it. Youâre right that the whites are so easy to blow out, and difficult to fix.
Zooming in, the image quality is so much better in the repost. I like the new crop, too.
