Critique Style Requested: Standard
The photographer is looking for generalized feedback about the aesthetic and technical qualities of their image.
I got this male northern shoveler with his head actually out of the water… briefly. I like the pose, and the reflection. I got rid of a few dots in the water.
Cropping about right?
Z9, Nikon 180-600 lens, Nikon 14 TC, hand held, 1/3200th, f 9.0, 1110mm, ISO 1100, cropped to 3204 x 2244
They don’t call them shovelers for nothing do they? I have no shots of this species for that reason. Crazy hungry dudes. I like the crisp eye and the slight sheen to the feathers. They have such great plumage. Plus you have some water sheeting off the bill that is so indicative of what they do. For a take-what-you-can-get shot, this is pretty darn good.
Image quality looks good, Dave, and the crop is fine. The shoveler isn’t level in the frame. The easiest way to adjust it is to use the leveling tool when you crop (you can level , then continue to crop). When you click on the leveling tool just draw the line from one prominent point in the bird to the corresponding point in it’s reflection and BINGO, PS will level it for you. Here’s a screen shot with a guide line showing the difference between the two beak tips.
Other than that, you might consider cloning or removing some of the out of focus reeds as to me at least, they’re a bit of a distraction. As Kris noted, catching these with their heads out of the water is tricky.
Nice species, often not all that easy (at least over here they tend to be rather shy). Dennis already pointed out what could be improved, no need to repeat. Love the ripples! Cheers, Hans
Nice look at the shoveler, getting the iridescence on the head and the water coming off the bill. I’d be tempted to clone out the reeds coming in from the left.
