Nikon D4s with 500mm | 1/1000s | f4.5 | ISO640 | overexposed 2/3EV | me and camera in the mud | one small twig was in front of the tail, so I cloned that out.
The bird stands out so nicely from the BG, with wonderful sharpness and detail. The BG is lovely and doesn’t feel too busy because the light is soft and the colors are no nicely matched to the bird. The bird is so nicely framed by the brown reeds. Your website has so many gorgeous images!!
Lovely habitat shot of this difficult to see bird Hans. I might crop a bit off the left and about half of the out of focus foreground to move the bird out of the center more.
Nice one Hans. I like how you have been able to frame the bird. And having the bird and the little bent reed it is standing is a very nice touch. Soft light and soft colors. I could also see a bit off left side but like the inclusion of the bird’s reflection. Good job getting that little eye.
Thanks, I thought about that, but the cut-off of the diagonal stem would look weird and distracting imo 
Beautiful, Hans. A great pose that really matches the angles of the reeds. I see what Nate was saying, but I think the weight of the large reed pulls the balance to the left quite nicely without lopping anything off.
This is quite a pleasant environmental shot. I really like the filtered reflection in the water. It adds a lot to the difference between top and bottom. Even though it is a busy image, the Crake itself pops nicely against its environment. You had really good light for this shot, which looks like it was slightly cloudy.
