Critique Style Requested: Standard
The photographer is looking for generalized feedback about the aesthetic and technical qualities of their image.
Description
On Saturday night, Jenny asked me whether we could go to the park on Sunday morning and feed the birds. We woke up to a steady wet snowfall and a dreary, gray morning. At the end of our hike, we found a lone red-tailed hawk that was perched quietly about 50 feet from the trail. Action photography was out of the question due to inadequate lighting, but perfect lighting for a detailed take on this hungry hawk. She was perfectly concealed against the light gray sky and was hoping to ambush a mouse or small bird.
Technical Details
Z9 200-400mm f4 (1/400 sec at f9.0, ISO 1000, hand held) Levels, Shadows & Highlights, Brightness & Contrast, Slight crop for comp, Rubber stamp tool to remove tiny branch above hawk’s head, Increased Micro-contrast…Jim
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I really like this, Jim. The limb just frames her in nicely, and the snow on it makes it feel cold. The lighting on the bird is very nice. Wonderful details. I sure can’t think of anything to improve it.
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Very nice Jim. Details are spot on with a good look at the eye - even the pupil. Enjoy seeing the snow on the bird’s head and branch. Glad you were able to take good advantage of this opportunity.
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This is really nice, Jim. The detail in the hawk is very good as is the pose. I like the high key background and the way you maintained just a bit of luminosity difference between the sky and the snow so the snow on the branch didn’t disappear.
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Really nice shot of the hawk, Jim. It’s refreshing to see an image that with no possibility of distractions in the background, yet enough interest in addition to the subject to tell a story. I’m cold and hungry just looking at this! Thanks for sharing it.
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Thank you @Allen_Sparks , @Ron_Meeker , @Dennis_Plank, and @Shirley_Freeman . It was nice to get some snow. Our Winter in Michigan has been very rainy with maybe 3 days of sunny conditions so nature photography has been very limited.
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Terrific image, Jim. The fluffed up feathers tell a story about how cold it is and the snow on the branches is delightful. The detail is superb and tack sharp. The grey, not white sky adds to the blustery conditions and I can feel the cold. I love the perch and how it frames the hawk. I am trying hard to come up with a nit and for the life of me, I got nothing. Great image!
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