Southern White-faced Scops-Owl

Image Critiques Avian Critiques
1

Owl (365 of 1).jpg
Owl (365 of 1).jpg1500×1666 2.22 MB

I discovered another shot that I took, I like it a lot better. And I followed Jim’s ideas for cropping.

Owl (365 of 1)-2
Owl (365 of 1)-21223×1565 1.72 MB

Critique Style Requested: Standard

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

Description

Southern White-faced Scops-Owl (Ptilopsis granti), a small species of owl native to sub-Saharan Africa.
A unique feature of this owl is its ability to “transform” its appearance as a defense mechanism. When threatened, it can either puff up to appear larger or slim down and elongate its body to mimic a branch or reduce visibility.

Specific Feedback

I am in several minds about the composition. How about the branch at the top of the frame? Should it stay or go? Should the owl be smaller and placed less centrally?

Should I attempt to lighten up the eyes?

Technical Details

Kodak DCS Pro Slr/n
1/20 sec at f/6.3 160 ISO
AF-S Nikkor 200 - 500mm at 300mm

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2

Pieter, a fantastic shot of this owl!

I would definitely crop the branch out from the top and take a bit off the right side to move the owl out-of-center.

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3

Thanks, Jim! Coming right up!

4

Nice, I like it!

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5

What an interesting owl.

I like the second image posted showing more of the open eyes and and the removal of the top branch.
The detail looks good and I like the off centre pose.

I might consider cloning out the tiny bit of overhead branch left and perhaps using a low opacity clone over some of the bright spots in the background.

This is a cracker of a shot!

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6

Beautiful and interesting Owl, Pieter. I agree that the tiny bit of branch sticking into the top can go. The brighter background spots don’t bother me as much since the whole background is fairly bright. The composition works fine for me.

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7

Hi Pieter
The over head branch works to frame the Scops-Owl, but I think you could either add more branch or lose it. I really like the eyes on the second Owl.
Peter

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8

Thank you, Peter!

9

Thank you, Dennis!

10

Pieter - great image of this lovely owl!
Very nice detail and pose. The second image, with the overhead branch removed and eyes brightened turned out excellent.
The bright white areas to the left of the head ARE a bit distracting.

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11

Thank you, Sandy!