Critique Style Requested: Standard
The photographer is looking for generalized feedback about the aesthetic and technical qualities of their image.
Description
I was trying to capture sharp yet blurred images of birds in flight on this day. I think getting something interesting is all about taking hundreds of images and hoping the photography Gods give you something to play with.
Not sure if you could tell but this is a cormorant in full blur motion. I have others with the head sharp and wings blurred but there was something very abstract about this one that made me keep it and process it. I really like the liquid nature of the wings and the simplicity of this. Not sure if you agree or not. I get it and fully understand if you don’t. 
Specific Feedback
I really like the liquid nature of the wings and the simplicity of this. Not sure if you agree or not. I get it and fully understand if you don’t.
Technical Details
Z8, 100-400mm lens @ 290mm, 1/40th second, f/11, ISO 125
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I get it and I totally agree! A sharp eye is nice sometimes but so is going more abstract. Anybody knows it’s a bird in flight, and as far as my taste, more abstracted is just fine. I love going B/W with this as it’s all about lines and motion. There always seems to be a surprise with this stuff and here it is the striking vertical separations in the wing feathers. I can’t visualize where they came from by a wing’s structure and expected motion – well, maybe separated primary tips – but no need to understand things in order to appreciate them!
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I really like your Vision. Perfect in B&W !!! Very Cool… You know its a bird in flight and you can feel the energy. Well Done !!!
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David,
Very cool! I recognized as a commarant right away! In fact my last couple of visits to Monterey Bay, I’ve photographed them too from the hotel balcony. I may post something. I know pretty much exactly your thought process and wishes for this scenario; trying to capture a moving subject, but blurring the bg and getting as sharp an image as possible of the moving subject. Ain’t easy! And like you, when you find a result like this it’s quite gratifying.
The striking simplicity of this works beautifully. And the b&w makes it even more so. I agree with you on the fluid nature of the capture. Simple and engaging. Kudos on this one David!
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I like this a lot, David. The wing blur is very, very cool. They 0obviously flap in a different pattern from the cranes and geese that we see blurred more often. The blurred body works for me as well with the head and body reasonably well defined. An utterly minor nit: I think your border gets lost because of the low contrast between it and the empty sky. I took the liberty of downloading your image and adding a 3 pixel stroke on the inside of the border using the light part of the body under the wing as the color. To my eye, it makes a difference, but as you noted, tastes vary a lot.
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Hi David,
The blurry bird and wings look beautiful. I love these kinds of shots, and they do take up a lot of space on the card until you see the one you like. The wing blur is lovely and in beautiful contast to the sharp outline of the body between the neck and wings.
Question: is this black and white? It looks very dark, chocolatey brown to me. Either way, Congrats!
Good catch Mark. This is not a B&W. There is some color in the bird. Eagle eyes. Thanks for your comment. Hope everything is well with you.
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