Rarely do I see these birds of prey sitting on the ground watching, but had this one and a Peregrine Falcon within 10 yards of each other on a berm above the ponds studying the ducks and each other at the marsh. Quickly readied the camera for a flight mode and almost as soon as I was focused it was…Jump…Flap and Go.
Specific Feedback Requested
The bird in the 3rd image looks to me like an illustration more than a photo image, not sure it was the processing…any one see this in their images? Any and all comments welcome.
Technical Details
Is this a composite: No
Nikon D7100, Nikkor Lens 200-500 @500 5.6 @1/1600, ISO 400 Handheld
A really nice series you’ve presented Stephan. All the eyes are tack sharp and the exposure seems to be fine; looks like you had a nice overcast day. His coloration even stands out against the somewhat “busier” backgrounds. Well done!
All excellent shots of the harrier. Tack sharp flight images. I see what you mean about the third shot and the second shot has a similar feel. I wonder if this has something to do with the background being more in focus than the fourth shot. I looks as if the bird was copied and then pasted on the background (obviously not). You might try selecting the background and blurring it to see if the effect goes away. Regardless, great images and I especially like the take off pose with the bird looking towards you.
Hi Stephen
Great series of photographs. I think if you soften the lower-left brush in the third shot, that would clear up any thoughts of an illustration.
Peter
Thanks to @Jim_Gavin@David_Bostock@Diane_Miller@Allen_Brooks@peter@Jim_Lockhart for your comments and input. They are appreciated. I have played with softening and desaturating the the “illustration” image, it does look like a cut and paste but it has a good depth and dimension to the image. I’m not really displeased with the outcome just an observation and a wonder why. Thanks again for the comments and input.
