Brown-eared Bulbul

Good try, Mark and an unusual bird. As you point out, it's not a great shot because of the point of view and the prominence of that perch. It looks to me like you had fun taking the picture though and wanted to share the experience. Anyway, I know I feel that way and have sometimes posted such "not great" shots for that reason. One way of eliciting more interest despite the quality of the image is to tell us more about the bird and where the shot was obtained. I've never heard of this bird before. So, how about some more info? Also, why don't you know how much you cropped? What did you do to find out? Maybe we can help by offering suggestions. Any post processing in addition to cropping?

First and foremost, always a pleasure to see another species of Bulbul, being that we have so many different species of Bulbul over here in Thailand and I've never even heard of this one, so thanks for sharing Mark! I would be interested to know in which country you shot this?

I think the main disadvantage you had was your angle of view, as it appears you were practically shooting straight up, which seldom makes for a pleasing result, something I've discovered a long while ago, even though I continued the practice longer than I should have whenever I came across a new subject I was desperate to add to my collection ;^)

I'm much more particular now with subjects I wish to photograph, often not even bothering to take a shot if I can see that the best angle possible won't deliver an image free of too many distractions or bright patches of sky. I'm pretty sure you'll become more discerning of what pictures are worth taking and which ones aren't the with the more opportunities you have out in the field and as your collection of images grows. The key is: Keep at it! :^)

Thanks Steve and Ashley for the great support and advice. I have to admit that I was so excited to see a different bird that I just fired away, worried that it would get away. I think I do have a clearer shot and will post when my 48 are up...and with more information...

Thanks again.

That's a tough angle, it feels kind of straight up. If you hadn't cropped it much I would say it's better to back off some so the angle isn't so steep, I'll look forward to your next image of this species Mark.

Hey Mark, I'm still genuinely interested to know in which country you came across this species of Bulbul?