American Goldfinch

Gallery: AvianPosted October 22, 2010176 views10 comments

Another one dragged out of the archives from 2008-this one in July. I posted another one in the group of shots back then, but I wanted to try working up this one. One errant broken grass stem removed that interfered with the flow of the image.

40D, 500mm f4 + 1.4 TC, Black Widow on Gitzo legs, f7.1, 1/1000, iso 640 (I don't remember why at this point). Cropped to 49% of the original, normal processing in CS4, some fiddling with the WB and exposure in ACR. Taken at 7:47 pm on July 3, 2008.

I always appreciate your comments and criticisms.

Thanks,

Comments

10 comments

Comment posted by Nate Chappell on October 22, 2010 at 11:56 PM

I love the composition and the rimlighting you've captured here Dennis. The whitish line in the bg above the bird catches my eyes some and I would consider trying to tone it down down or even clone it out. A neat image, well seen and processed.

Registered on February 1, 2006, 1158 Posts, 19528 Comments

Comment posted by Richard Ditch on October 23, 2010 at 12:24 AM

A strong composition with nice graphics. There's something "off" about the color, though - a magenta cast or perhaps too much blue. I'd definitely play around some more with the color balance.

Registered on November 1, 2003, 1031 Posts, 12705 Comments

Comment posted by Howard Cheek on October 23, 2010 at 8:05 AM

You have to see this in the large view to appreciate it..
In the thumbnail the shadowed side of the bird looks UE, but large it looks fine to me..
Nice "flow" to the image with that curved perch, great environment.
I like it

Registered on July 24, 2008, 1201 Posts, 10758 Comments

Comment posted by Steve Balke on October 23, 2010 at 8:10 AM

I really like the comp and the lighting here, Dennis. The shade on the bird does conceal detail. However, it's fine in this case because the lilghting is so intrinsic to the image. I think that it would be worthwhile lowering the exposure on the white line mentioned by Nate. Also, I believe that Richard is right about there being some kind of overall cast to the color; at the same time, I rather like the color. However, you might find it does improve the image to alter the color balance a bit.

Registered on June 18, 2009, 229 Posts, 2915 Comments

Comment posted by Mia McPherson on October 23, 2010 at 9:50 AM

Dennis,

Even though the goldfinch is small in the frame this image conveys a lovely sense of intimacy for me. The delicacy of the grasses is quite beautiful, both in the foreground and background. I agree with Rich D. on the color cast. I love the gentle curve of the stem the goldfinch is perched on and the lighting.

Registered on June 25, 2007, 491 Posts, 12566 Comments

Comment posted by KC Choo on October 23, 2010 at 2:00 PM

Nice one - I do detect a slight color cast, too, on my monitor.

Registered on November 15, 2004, 519 Posts, 8278 Comments

Comment posted by Dan Moore on October 23, 2010 at 8:23 PM

I love the BG and FG. This image grows on you. I did not think it was up to your quality at first but after comming back a couple of times I changed my mind.

Dan

Registered on February 11, 2010, 143 Posts, 1248 Comments

Comment posted by Rob Drummond on October 23, 2010 at 10:46 PM

Great shot Dennis - fantastic detail in the seeding grasses. Agree with Nate re the pale area.

cheers
Rob

Registered on November 8, 2003, 617 Posts, 8267 Comments

Comment posted by Monica Siri on October 24, 2010 at 9:11 AM

Dennis,
I really like this comp, the pose of the bird and the curved perch. Well done.

Registered on September 20, 2009, 132 Posts, 3764 Comments

Comment posted by Ron Dudley on October 24, 2010 at 9:45 PM

Dennis, Love the graphic lines provided by the dark stem and bird but I'm torn by the lack of light on much of the bird. Can't win for losing, I know. I really like the grasses and their colors.

Registered on March 30, 2007, 437 Posts, 10915 Comments