Palm Tanager & Repost

Image Critiques Avian Critiques
1

Repost: I couldn’t resist going back to work on the background and perch a bit more.

-20240229-_A1_6135-Costa Rica-Enhanced-NR-Edit-Edit
-20240229-_A1_6135-Costa Rica-Enhanced-NR-Edit-Edit1439×2048 1.78 MB

Original:

-20240229-_A1_6135-Costa Rica-Enhanced-NR-Edit.jpg
-20240229-_A1_6135-Costa Rica-Enhanced-NR-Edit.jpg1439×2048 1.88 MB

Critique Style Requested: Standard

The photographer is looking for generalized feedback about the aesthetic and technical qualities of their image.

Description

This is a species that I didn’t photograph too much even though there were lots of them around. Usually they look gray to me and just don’t seem to have much personality. Basically a very boring bird. However, when I saw this one with its back to me and that head turn with the lovely green plumage, I knew I wanted an image of it.

Specific Feedback

I’m basically pretty happy with this image. I did have to eliminate some hot spots in the background and along the upper edge of that leaf stem on the right. If they’re still obnoxious, I’ll go back and work on them. I would have preferred a bit looser crop, but there was a very bright, very ugly, very large leaf just to the right of where I cropped this.

Technical Details

Sony A1 FE 200-600 + 1.4 TC @ 664 mm, monopod, f/9, 1/320, iso 5000, manual exposure. Processed in LR & PS CC. Cropped to 2736x3894. Photographed on February 29th at 11:31 a.m.

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2 Likes
2

Hi Dennis, love the backwards glance with the view of the back. Beautiful plumage and fine details. The BG and perch look good to me. Well done.

3

Dennis, the overall green bird and surrounding foliage provides a very calming effect overall. The crop works just fine for me. It keeps us from eye wandering too much… :sunglasses:

4

Excellent. Superb geen tones and detail. Exquisite pose, Find comp. Really like this one.

5

I really like this composition and the pose of the bird. As said previously the texture/lines of the bird’s are really nice. I also really like the way the head stands out in the image. I am assuming you brightened it slightly to make it stand out, but it could have been just the lighting in the scene or maybe the bird’s head is a brighter green. At any rate I think that really is a nice touch on an already great image!

6

Thanks @Willemd I’m not above brightening heads, but I got lucky on this one and didn’t have to do anything. For once the mottled light through all the tropical foliage worked in the photographer’s favor!

1 Like
7

The colors and detail here are fantastic, Dennis. What an amazing specimen and how nicely you have rendered him. The pose is pretty special. I take it his body is facing the other way, and his head is turned? What makes this interesting to me is that we can’t see his feet. As a result, he has a kind of magical, hovering quality there, as much mystical creature as identifiable bird.

Really nicely done, and I do like the repost. What a joy to look at.
ML

1 Like