The photographer is looking for generalized feedback about the aesthetic and technical qualities of their image.
Description
Back in January I traveled to Guyana, ostensibly to scout it as a future tour destination, but on a personal level to see the top bird on my wish list: the Harpy Eagle.
There’s a nest site that’s been active for over thirty years, and once we reached the viewpoint (some distance away, but on a promontory that allowed us to look across rather than up), we soon had a fledged chick in sight.
I have mixed feelings about this photo, since we never did see the adult over three days, and that was the big goal. On the other hand, I’ve actually seen a Harpy, and Harpy chicks are beautiful… and the framing of these branches and trunks was more than I could’ve hoped for when it came to a photo op. So while it didn’t quite land on my “best of the year” list, it’s certainly up there!
Technical Details
Canon R5
Canon 600mm + 1.4x
ISO 800
1/200th
f/9
Critique Template
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Excellent image, Max. I can see why you like it regardless of the species. I suspect if you’d been lucky enough to have a better sky it would be in the top ten-it certainly would be in mine.
I can see why. Even fledglings of very large birds are magnificent and intimidating. I had a close encounter with a Bald Eagle at about the same age as your Harpy, but I’m sure much smaller. I love the intensity you have here and the framing is pretty great. I find the (?) lens flare in the LLC to be a bit distracting and so if you have the pixels to crop a bit more, it woudn’t hurt. 30 years of active nesting. Wow. I assume the same birds since eagles are so territorial. Even though it was only scouting, I think you have a stellar location on your hands.
Very cool! A huge chick, and - clearly - the adults were around even though you missed them… chicky looks to have a full stomach.
Intimidating stare and nice environment, as well.
Definitely a good spot for future attempts at the adults !
Hi Max: What an amazing looking creature y ou have captured in this fine image! The firmness of the stare would scare off most! I do have some “suggestions” but please realize I am far from an Avian expert! From my photography I have learned that when shooting a subject with a lot of white color having a background that is also white can diminish the impact of the subject. Of course, there are exceptions to every rule, but for this photograph you might try darkening the sky to accentuate your subject. For the same reason, you might introduce a mild vignette. Other than that, a truly terrific image!
for this photograph you might try darkening the sky to accentuate your subject. For the same reason, you might introduce a mild vignette.
Thanks, Tom. The type of processing (especially vignettes) that gets into “illustration” is something I try to avoid. In this case, it was overcast with featureless cloud cover, so there wasn’t any texture I could “reintroduce” by darkening the background, so it made sense to leave it as-is (“as seen”) for this presentation.
Not an ideal scenario in many respects, but a mostly clear view of a magnificent bird is in some ways better than I should have expected.
Love the framing and the fact that it is looking straight at you - I do agree with Dennis - that background - you couldnt control this at the time but try lowering the sky exposure and cooling it - might help some
Overall a great shot!
