I shot this using the 70-200VR at 70mm. I was way too close and believe that the biggest criticism (before being enlightened by voters) is that there is not enough space in front of the beak. The problem was that I couldn't get far enough away from this bird and the 70-200 was actually gave me too much reach. Maybe I'll try the Tokina 12-24 next time like with my alligator shot, lol.
I'm very happy with how this photo trip turned out and with this shot. Actually, I had several to choose from and this one is my replacement choice. My original choice was this one...
I think that my final choice will do slightly better and if I can be so bold, I predict a 7.1 for the final score. Despite it being winter for most of the DPC population, I expect that there will be a least several serious contenders for ribbons in this challenge so I can only hope.
Underexposed the shot by -1 step to avoid blown out highlights
Converted RAW file in Nikon Capture NX
Opened converted file in CS2
Levels
Sponge tool to increase saturation in the yellow parts
Adjusted hue and saturation in cyan and blue
Cloned out twig
Overlay layer at 30% opacity to "make it pop" (thanks Bear_Music for this idea in your recent thread)
History brush where the overlay layer blew out the brightest whites
Unsharp
Crop
Added border
Sized for DPC
Post Challenge
Whew! This week is finally over and many of us knew that this would be a high scoring challenge with all of the outstanding entries. 4 scores of 7+ not ribboning illustrates how competitive this challenge was. Congratulations to all who entered and many thanks to all of the commenters.
Statistics
Place: 1 out of 251 Avg (all users): 7.5512 Avg (commenters): 8.8148 Avg (participants): 7.4388 Avg (non-participants): 7.6542 Views since voting: 9325 Views during voting: 439 Votes: 205 Comments: 74 Favorites: 16 (view)
Yakatme...I love this shot! Bravo... if you had wanted to add mor space in front of his/her beak, you could have gone to Image... Canvas size, and added as much as you wanted,.. be sure to use your eyedropper to select the blue , so when you fill in the extra canvas it matches! Good luck, and keep up the fabulous photography! Jeudi D. I love my D70 as well, and now have a D300, which is way cool also!
Wow I haven't critiqued in a while and first one I get is this beautiful piece. I remember seeing it when I was voting thinking it had to ribbon and yes it did. Congratulations. I love how in the details you commented about what you learned in the a forum I think that really puts it into perspective for all of us, how much we can learn.
Over the image is very striking, I think the contrast between the blue sky and white bird are prefect for this shot. The border is a very nice way to frame up the shot. I also love the include of the stick the bird is standing on. The focus all the way down to the feet is prefect. There is not much I can say because it is so prefect. Nice job.
This rocks.. I like the crop better on the outtake than the winner. I like to see a little space between the border, but my preference isn't usually what others like. He is definitely a cool looking bird.
I didn't vote, but did look thru the images for this challenge. I suspected that this was one of your Anhinga Trail shots, because I could see that you were close when you got the shot from the perspective, and I know that the egrets are in mating plumage at this time.
It's appropriate that it's mid winter, and the bird that you chose is a snowy egret. It's about as close to snow as we get down here LOL.
This is the "plume bird" that was hunted to near extinction for feathers for ladies hats last century, but they are getting more common now. I have seen flocks of over 50 of them in the 'Glades.
Big congrats on the blue. Go Nikon!
Congrats on the blue, I saw this and knew it would be in the top three. Great score. Great feather detail and nice white tones in the shot. Congrats Again!
Love the blue sky, haven't seen a blue sky in Michigan in weeks. composition good, colors good, contrast and saturation good. Focus good but not POPPING good. Very nice shot.
Stunning. Dynamic. Perfect in every way! Besides the great exposure and sharp detail, the movement created by the great composition and timing make this a top-notch image. This is the first shot I opened, but I'd nominate it for a ribbon without seeing the rest.
this is a great photograph,the bird stands out so much it could be 3D,I would score high for this shot if i was a full member and be very happy if i'd taken it.
Fantastic technical capture - no blown highlights and very sharp. Blue sky complements the yellows as well. Would hope to see this top 10 if not ribbon.
White Balance
Add photograph to your favorites
Add photographer to your favorites
Photographer found comment helpful.
