The photographer is looking for generalized feedback about the aesthetic and technical qualities of their image.
Description
After seeing Peter Morrissey’s wonderful stork images, I thought of these Cattle Egrets. The young look quite prehistoric. Just a fun look.
These were photographed by a smallish pond in a rural community. A road passes very close to the rookery and many chicks, learning to fly, meet their end by flying into cars. The council have provided temporary netting and witches’ hats to alert motorists of the activity.
Specific Feedback
Comments are welcomed and appreciated.
Some twig removal in the second shot. Mostly ACR adjustments that included shadow lifting and a lot of highlights taming.
Technical Details
Both shots 1/3200 f6.3 ISO1600 100-400@400mm Hand Held
The first image shows an excellent look at the chicks, Glenys, but the second one is priceless for the interaction going on and tells a nice story. I also like the coloring and light on the parent.
Two great photos. I love the feel of the two chicks, they look a bit awkward, feathers sticking up, like they just got up in the morning. Great framing with the branches. I like the action of the second photo.
These are both wonderful!! I could see a crop on the first to get rid of most of the OOF leaves on the left – looks like more than enough IQ to have the chicks bigger in the frame. Maybe a vertical frame if that works for you, as I find the nest and the BG bokeh quite interesting. The second is just an Oh Wow!! The Egrets I see are always frantic like this at the feed trough. I love the stare of the one in the BG!
I like both of these a lot, Glennie. I don’t mind the tree on the left in the first because I like the way it curves around the nest and makes a partial frame. There is some odd artifact that i sometimes see in background grasses where there are lots of little parallel streaks that give the foliage a rather weird look. In grasses, I’ve just gone over them with the blur brush in PS a few times and it seems to cure the problem. Probably lots of ways to do it in Raw as well.
The jumble of action in the second image is just awesome and all the eyes are just so cool.
A nice pair of images Glenys. Nice to see the chicks so well in the first with a bit of environment included. The second image reminds me of past visits to rookeries where the adults seem to take a beating at every feeding session. Great capture of that.
These are fantastic, Glennie. I was drawn in by the first (as I’ve never seen young egrets, but knew exactly what they were). The second one, however, is one of those wildlife award photos. I mean this as a complement. The tangle of beaks, the fact that the one has opened up to straddle the other is just priceless. “Mom might put it in your beak, but I have your whole face in mine!” And then the one behind like, “I think I’ll wait until the next round.”
In other words, that one has so much human, bird behavior, sibling rivalry, anthropomorphism, and the wonderful chaos of eyes and beaks at the center of the frame. Nicely done!
Interesting thought @Diane_Miller . I liked the way the foliage moved around the chicks, but now I think there could be another version.
Thank you @Dennis_Plank ! I didn’t even notice that weird looking foliage. Now I can’t unsee it! The plant is a noxious weedy climber/scrambler called Aspargus Fern ( Asparagus setaceus). Not a fern at all. But it does have the tiniest of leaves that have picked up the strong sunlight here. Your suggestion of removing the problem sounds like a good one.
Wonderful images. I love the framing of the first image and the dappled light really elevates the composition. The second image is very intimate and evokes a sense of emotion. Well done.
