Female Fragile Forktail

Image Critiques
1

Eastern Forktail.jpg
Eastern Forktail.jpg2000×1386 389 KB

Critique Style Requested: Standard

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

Description

We finally have hot summer-like temperatures with lots of sun. The smoke from the Canadian wildfires has produced some bright, diffuse lighting. This one is highly likely an older female fragile forktail with its waxy bloom obscuring some of the key field marks. Earlier, I was naming this one as an Eastern forktail. Lots of strong breezes made this especially difficult to get with manual focus.

Specific Feedback

What do you think about the comp?

Technical Details

Z9 200mm f4 (1/250 sec at f14, ISO 1250) DeNoise, Levels, slight crop, Brightness & Contrast…Jim

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2

Jim: I hear you regarding the focus but you certainly nailed it. I’m not familiar with Nikon viewfinders but with my A7rIII and an FE lens aboard I get a magnified view when I go to manual focus. The AF is pretty effective but I always want maximum precision on the eye which you got here. Great subject on a fine perch and a good capture. >=))>

3

Very nice, Jim. I can see that this would be very difficult with manual focus, but I agree with Bill that you nailed it. I like the composition here as well.

5

Jim, I think you did really well in manual focus in the breeze. The composition works for me.

6

Looks Good to Me !!! Great Image and i know hard to shoot. What is DeNoise. Sandy is using a Noise reduction software. I need to learn but noise looks like the film days to me. Great framing and keeping the image simple and direct on this insect. Way to Cool. !!!

8

Hi Jim. I admire this photograph very much. In a complex aquatic environment it can be really hard to see these tiny, frail insects. It’s a real accomplishment when you make such a handsome image.

9

Thank you @Bill_Fach , @Dennis_Plank , @Sandy_Richards-Brown , @Shirley_Freeman , @Gill_Vanderlip , and @Russell_Carpenter for your critiques. Regarding @Gill_Vanderlip 's question, I use the DeNoise function in Lightroom Classic. Noise refers to the speckling that happens when the image capturing sensor generates a lot of heat during image capture. This typically happens whenever the sensor works harder to capture light especially when shooting at high ISO’s in low light. Most modern digital cameras have hardware and firmware that makes noise more easily controlled and removed with denoise software. Analogously, grain in high ASA/ISO film is the film version of noise.

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