They were acting somewhat agitated yesterday and kept peering into the nest box. I was worried and after dark I carefully peered into the box, to find one (maybe both?) sitting on the eggs. (I could only see the tip of a tail sticking up.) Three days ago there were 3 eggs and today after I saw them well away from the nest I peeked again and now there are 5 eggs. I hope to start getting meal delivery in about 2 weeks.
Specific Feedback Requested
All comments welcome!
Technical Details
Is this a composite: No
Canon R5, 600 f/4 + 2X at f/13 (for a bit more DOF), ISO 1600, 1/400. Sturdy tripod and head. Soft light. Minimal processing – shadows raised in LR, blacks down a bit, a touch of Clarity. Into PS for NR (barely noticeable change) and an area of brightening on the face.
Really well done image with impeccable color and detail. Wonderful pose and comp. I am having a difficult time deciding which image you posted this week is my favorite. It is between this and the Oriole.
You’ve been producing some nice portraits, Diane. I’m curious how close you are in this case since you needed f/13… I imagine quite close if it’s a yard bird?
Between this and your recent swallow, I prefer the diagonal lines and pose of the swallow, but I think your composition has better balance here (you cropped it just right!).
On my monitor, at first glance I did think the shadows had been brought up a bit, and I see your description confirms that was the case. This may not be the intention for everyone trying to maintain a natural look, so I thought I’d mention it.
Thanks everyone! @Max_Waugh, the camera was 25-26 ft from the perch. (I was a bit father away for the Swallow, judging from the size in the frame.) According to the standard calculations, f/8 (wide open) gives a DOF of 0.72" and f/13 almost doubles that, to 1.2". I have felt for years that the DOF is narrower than the calculations show, and I wonder if the value used for the circle of confusion is too high for the newer high-res sensors and lenses.
I think I do have a bias toward pulling out shadow detail, especially since we now have such great NR capabilities. I try to balance that with Clarity. Here, the bird was in dappled shade but the BG was in full sun, so the bird was a bit underexposed and slightly backlighted, which was the reason for bringing up shadows. I could probably give the bird a little more dimensionality.
