Female Bluebird

Image Critiques Avian Critiques
1

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-20250404-_SA12641-yardbirds-ARW-Edit.jpg1564Ă—2048 1.23 MB

Critique Style Requested: Standard

The photographer is looking for generalized feedback about the aesthetic and technical qualities of their image.

Description

Another from the morning with the swallows. This Bluebird flew into the oak sapling for a minute. Unfortunately she never gave me a different head turn than this.

Specific Feedback

Too small in the frame? Is the slightly turned away head a major problem?

Technical Details

Sony A1 FE 200-600 + 1.4 TC @ 840 mm, hand held, f/9, 1/2000, iso 2500, manual exposure. Processed in LR & PS CC. Cropped from a horizontal original to 3241x4243 pixels. Taken April 4th at 8:09 a.m.

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1 Like
2

Really like the colors, hues, etc. Am wondering what a horizontal composition would look like? Nice work!

3

Hi Dennis
I like the overall framing, as the tree brings my eye to the Bluebird, it just looks a little dark. This is ware I get in trouble, I started playing with it in DXO PhotoLab and sent into Nik Silver Efex, there I turned it into a B&W with the Bluebird keeping some of it’s coloring and came up with this.
Peter

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4

Dennis, I am more used to your bird shots being in much closer, but this is fine to me as it shows his environment. The slight head turn doesn’t bother me.

5

Nice, fleeting catch! Soft colours and a nice BG.
I think the vertical crop works well, and the head position isn’t bothersome.

6

Dennis: nicely seen and captured. I like the overall soft look of the image. A tighter crop is certainly an alternative but I like it as is. The head turn is not an issue.

7

Dennis: I like the subdued colors of the female and I like your environment. Good job on capturing a fleeting moment. >=))>

8

Hi Dennis, the original looks good to me as is. The fog really sets a mood. The vertical loose composition helps accentuate that mood.

9

I like the composition but I don’t feel I get the best character of fog here – something feels too flat. I increased exposure a tad and pushed Dehaze up a bit and got what felt more natural. Maybe the same effect is better done with careful tweaks of the tonal sliders in raw conversion, or even looking at the different camera profiles…