At a local wildlife refuge a few years ago. Reprocessed this image today using some new skills.
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Technical Details
ISO 1000, 400+ 2X, F7 .1, 2000th, Sony A1, 30% of full frame
Excellent work, David. I don’t know what the previous version looked like bu this one is stunning.
This has an almost 3 dimensional look and feel to it. The bird is nice and sharp yet everything else in the background is so out of focus and blurred. In a way it almost looks too blurred or un-naturally blurred but maybe I’m just not used to seeing an image like this that’s so 3 dimensional. It definitely had a unique feel to it. I feel like I can just reach out and pluck the bird out of the image. You had some great light in this shot David and I like the habitat. Thanks for sharing this. I’m really enjoying looking at this.
The northern harrier is very nice in this frame. It is showing that great “look down” hunting pose while cruising over a field. I like that a lot.
The background doesn’t feel right. It feels overly blurred and for me, the front part of the frame (bottom) feels like it should be sharper since it is nearly the same focal plane as the bird, while the more distant parts of the background could naturally be more OOF, yet it looks like a uniform blur was applied to everything except the harrier. I don’t know if that is correct or if there was something else in the processing.
An interesting treatment of the background, David. At first glace it looks beautiful with that creamy smooth texture, bu Keith is right in that with the foreground grasses showing, ther should be an in focus band somewhere. I beleive there’s a tilt-shift blur available that might create a more realistic look. I’m not sure how else you can get a gradient blur, but I suspect there are several techniques for doing it.
Great flight shot! Harriers are so interesting.
There is a way to get a more graduated blur by using the Tilt Shift Blur in Photoshop - this lets you place where it starts and stops and keeps the focal plane sharp while throwing the background OOF. I’ve used it with birds on perches with success.
Or just use a gradient Black to White Mask on the blur layer to control where the blur is.
It’s easier than the Tilt Shift Blur and easily adjustable to determine where the blur is full strength and where it begins/ends to fade.
There are so many ways to do everything in Photoshop! Thanks.
@David_Haynes @Keith_Bauer @Dennis_Plank @Kris_Smith @David_Bostock
I added the original without any blur. This is as taken with minimal processing. And I do think it is a better image.
Very nice look at the harrier in flight. The first image does create an interesting 3D effect, but the second image does appear more natural. I do like the environmental aspect to the photo.
I like the second version better. This is a perfect example that in processing often times “less is more”
I personally like the blur version, David. Nice.
As with any new toy or skill, one needs to try different approaches. I can see the blurring tool being more effective with busy backgrounds and other images where one wishes to get more separation. But I am happy with the new skill. I just need to learn how to make judicious use of it…
It’s so easy to get carried away with a new skill or toy. The original was superb, though I can see why you thought it might work well to add the extra blur.
I love the original – this is such a gorgeous image it didn’t need any help!
I sometimes do a blurred layer then use a large soft brush to erase the blur on the center, leaving a vignette blur. Brushing it out with a mask gives good control. And a gradient mask is also sometimes a good tool.
I also prefer the original - except for those horizontal grey and beige strips of BG which you toned down well in the rework.
A nice, sharp & detailed capture of this Northern Harrier, David! I like the original version with less blurring of the foreground grasses. It feels more natural to me and has more presence when viewed large.