Cold Stilt

[dadas115]

This is another one from this weekend that I thought needed something more. What I like about the picture is the grass and the position of the bird. I really want to keep it at a 2:3 ratio. Any comments/suggestions?

Thanks,

Greg

[mtb'n ski]

Viry nice shot. It has nice cool colors and definately gives a good impression of the scene. My only comment is that you merged the head and beak of the bird with the grass.

[bobbythebandit]

Good try but personnally i would rather see more of the bird.
Bobby

[dadas115]

When you say you would like to see more of the bird I am a bit confused as the only parts of the bird that are obscured are his feet. Do you mean that you would like the picture to be brighter or that the framing to be tighter? Maybe this picture is just a lost cause? The elements that I wanted to retain here are the 2:3 aspect ratio, the bird and the grass behind the bird. This picture is not intended to be a portrait of a stilt since I have literally thousands of those already. What I am trying to do is figure out how to improve this particular shot. Do you have any suggestions about what would make this shot better because I would really appreciate any advice in that area.

Thanks,

Greg

[bobbythebandit]

When you say you would like to see more of the bird I am a bit confused as the only parts of the bird that are obscured are his feet. Do you mean that you would like the picture to be brighter or that the framing to be tighter? Maybe this picture is just a lost cause? The elements that I wanted to retain here are the 2:3 aspect ratio, the bird and the grass behind the bird. This picture is not intended to be a portrait of a stilt since I have literally thousands of those already. What I am trying to do is figure out how to improve this particular shot. Do you have any suggestions about what would make this shot better because I would really appreciate any advice in that area.

Thanks,

Greg

No its quite alright the way it is, only that i would like him in full silhoutte or with his head up so i could see his face.But they dont pose for us, do they?. I like the ratio too and him doing what they do gives it a very nice feeling of naturelness.
Bobby

[Steph_B]

Hi Greg,

I really like nature pics which incorporate some of the subject's environment. This is a good example. For instance, i like the twirly twigs in the BG.

However, like Bobby, I am also left with the feeling that something is missing... I too would have like to see the bird's head instead of its backside.

Cheers,

Steph.

[dadas115]

Thank you both for your comments. I guess what is confusing me is that I can see the bird's head. The body position of the bird and the grass in teh background were the only reasons I kept this picture. The bird reminded me of a man walking against the wind in the cold with his hands in his coat pockets. Maybe I'm just nuts but that is why I liked the pic. Like both of you something isn't quite right with this one for me but I am not sure what it is.

Thanks again,

Greg

[opus]

I think what we're really missing in this shot is the eye of the bird. We always want to see the eye of a creature. Even with humans, a picture is usually lacking that "something" when the eyes are in shadow, or if we don't see a catchlight.

I think that's what it is. We want the head higher so that we can see the eye better. Right now you have to really search for it.

[anew]

I really like this shot, i think the way the reeds wrap over the bird is nice, in that it does have that wind beaten effect. The colours are great, and the bird is sharp...............i think the beak blends a bit too much with the reeds in the background, which is the only problem i see with it. The head is fine, but on first view he's beakless!

Otherwise great shot, lovely wintry cold feel to it..............

anew.

[paulnj]

Less sky, more water ;) Not centered obviously, but about 15 % less sky/ more water.

What I think they are referring to is the going away angle of the stilt. Had it been more even to the film plane, the impact to the view would increase.

Don't get me wrong, I am not in anyway saying this image isn't nice, just how I WOULD improve apon it(if the stilt was cooperating)

[dadas115]

An interesting thing about him going away. I took several shots of this guy at this time while he was walking around. Some were heading toward me, some were parallel with the film plane some were going away. While I agree that images with the bird heading toward the observer or parallel to the film plane are closer to the ideal image than those with the bird heading away the other pictures didn’t do anything special for me because they were just another stilt shot. The reason I decided to keep this one was the position of the stilt and that I liked the grass. I think this must be one of those images (I am guessing we all take them) that the original photographer gets attached to for some reason but really isn’t a very good image. It happens to me enough anyway. After a few weeks I will probably look back at it and wonder why I bothered. This image does have some problems. I agree that the beak in the weeds doesn’t stand out as much as it should and that there is probably too much sky (darn 2:3 aspect ratio). This image is actually a crop out of a larger image that had a seagull and I think another stilt standing on this mound of grass that had recently been flooded. When I was taking the picture I liked the three birds together but when I got home and started working on them I decided I wanted to focus just on this one. As a result this shot suffered because the actual shot was not composed for it.

Thanks all for your help.

Greg

[dadas115]

Well I went back and looked through the pics in this series some mroe and came up with this one. I dont' like the body position as much as the first one but I think it addresses some of the other issues that the first pic had.

Greg

[paulnj]

A little tight on the front of the bird, but I like the head position much better.

A slight levels/curves adjustment brings out the feather detail in the back even more and brightens it up nicely. Right now it looks as if it was overcast that day, which isn't a bad thing at all in mid day avian photography ;)

[bobbythebandit]

Yes thats better. Can now make out character of this birdie. Thks.
Bobby