Juvenile Red Tail Hawk

Gallery: AvianPosted August 18, 2012110 views5 comments

Hey all! It's been a VERY long time since I have submitted something. I've been digital for a year now and have a decent computer with a very decent monitor, so I hope to submit more often now.

That said, I took this hawk this morning and it has been minimally cropped. I'm hoping you all think it's worth playing with further. I'd like it to be sharper especially in through it's face but I don't want to overdo it. Any help appreciated! Thanks!

Nikon D90, Nikon AF-S VR 70-200 at 200, ISO 200, F7.1, 1/400

Comments

5 comments

Comment posted by Philip Hodgkins on August 18, 2012 at 7:20 PM

Christine, if you are processing in Elements or Photoshop, make an adjustment layer and play with the sharpening in that. I use Smart Sharpen in Photoshop exclusively, but there are a number of really good third-party plugins that do a great job as well. Jim DeWitt has an excellent article on sharpening for NPN here: http://www.naturephotographers.net/articles0408/jd0408-1.html
It would also be helpful, when asking for specific help, to give a minimal account of your technicals (SS, aperture, ISO, lens, etc.) and post a larger picture.

Registered on July 24, 2006, 2741 Posts, 12349 Comments

Comment posted by Christine Adams on August 18, 2012 at 8:38 PM

Thanks for your help Phil! That article looks like it's going to be a real help! Techs are provided also. Repost in a day of so!

Registered on January 24, 2006, 119 Posts, 1871 Comments

Comment posted by Brian Gatlin on August 18, 2012 at 10:13 PM

Christine, I like the wing position here, the comp, and the clouds in the sky. the light was difficult here, it would be nice to have better light on the face. softness is probably due to the slow shutter speed (for birds in flight)--ISO 500 could have gotten you to 1/1000, which is better, but still perhaps a bit on the slow side for a flight shot. I'd clone the very small dark spot in the lower right corner.

edit to add: the hawk is an immature Red-tailed Hawk.

Registered on March 21, 2009, 202 Posts, 4187 Comments

Comment posted by Dennis Plank on August 18, 2012 at 10:20 PM

Hi Chris: I agree with the comments thus far. More shutter speed would certainly help. Also, it looks like the face was in the shadows, which is going to make it appear softer. If you are shooting in RAW, you could try bringing some more light into it with the shadows/highlight tools. You must hqave gotten really close to get this much bird with 200mm.

Registered on January 28, 2008, 1767 Posts, 23192 Comments

Comment posted by Christine Adams on August 19, 2012 at 5:36 AM

@ Brian and Dennis: Yes, I was pretty close to him and I hadn't expected to even see him let alone have him take off otherwise I would have bumped up the ISO. I was so happy with the wing position that I am hoping it's worth it to work it in PS.

And thanks for the ID!

Registered on January 24, 2006, 119 Posts, 1871 Comments