Critique Style Requested: Standard
The photographer is looking for generalized feedback about the aesthetic and technical qualities of their image.
Description
Our first full day at Laguna del Lagarto Lodge in the Caribbean lowlands was rainy all day. However the lodge has a large covered dining area with bird feeding and photography setups around two sides of it and they are probably the best lodge we stayed at for setting their feeding areas up for photographers. The one shortfall at all the lodges is the lack of smaller perches that suit the smaller birds, but if my experience here carries over, the larger birds would land on and break them, so you just have to get creative with your compositions. This Brown-headed Parrot is very common in this location and can dominate the feeders at times. However, that does make for some interesting interactions.
Specific Feedback
Does the bright epiphyte need toning down?
Technical Details
Sony A1, FE 200-600 @ 270 mm, monopod, f/6.3, 1/1250, iso 5000, manual exposure. Noise reduction in DxO PureRaw, processing in LR & PS CC. Cropped to 4495x3373 (I had zoomed out in hopes of flight shots). Taken February 19th at 7:52 a.m.
5 Likes
Dennis, a truly stunning and gorgeous bird here. I don’t do avian work, but I can really appreciate your artful work on this scene. No thoughts for change from me… 
Dennis, I think this bird really wanted to show you all its best attributes. No, the epiphyte didn’t bother me on first viewing and it doesn’t now. We even see the upper side of a wing. I’m guessing the tail is green? An exciting shot.
Such an excellent pose and wing spread. Awesome. The Epiphyte could be toned down but it’s not bothering me at all.
I actually like that the Epiphyte is bright. It stands out and it looks like the bird is actually interested in drinking water from it or feeding from it so I think it’s appropriate. The background is oh so dreamy and that’s a difficult thing to accomplish in Costa Rica. The perch is terrific for this size of bird. The colors of the bird, the spread wings, the head angle are all top notch. Wonderful.
Gotta love those colors. Excellent landing pose and detail. I would agree with David Haynes that there seems to be a connection between the bird and epiphyte (not that I knew what one was before today) and somehow it draws the eye into the landing. Another nice shot from your trip.
Nice pose you captured Dennis and all the colors look great. A striking species. Well done.
The colors of the underside of the wings are amazing. The bromeliad is quite bright and might be an easy selection to darken it slightly. Overall a fine image that provides the most colorful view of this parrot…Jim
