Parrot having a drink ...

[MichaelaN]

Hi,

This is my first post - I'm just learning to use my first DSLR and would appreciate any advice on how I could improve this photo, please. It was taken late afternoon on an overcast day.

Thanks,

Michaela



Camera: Canon EOS 50D
Exposure: 0.01 sec (1/100)
Aperture: f/6.3
Focal Length: 200 mm
ISO Speed: 400
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: Off, Did not fire

[AlphaGeek]

I like the subject alot... I don't personally see anything wrong overall with the picture. The only thing that I would recommend is to focus more on the bird. To me the bath is distracting from the bird... Crop like this? I hope you don't mind me playing with it.. I wanted to show what I envisioned with the shot.

[MichaelaN]

Yes, that looks much better - thanks AlphaGeek!

[LoveDSLR]

Here's my two cents.

There should be more emphasis on the parrot. It can be done with a shallower DOF and a stronger crop in your capture.

You can also use post processing to add more impact. Here's a quick sample for illustration.

[AlphaGeek]

Glad you like the crop.. I was going to mention shallower DOF too. I like the background, but some blur could help there too.

[MichaelaN]

Yes, a shallow DOF would have been nice ... but I haven't learned quite how to do that yet! LOL! I'll get there, though. Thanks again.

[sinophilia]

I like this picture, many shades of green. I totally agree on AlphaGeek's crop.
To achieve a shallower DOF set your lens to its widest aperture, this way you might also be able to shoot at lower ISO and maybe have a faster shutter speed (with a 200mm focal length 1/200 would be safer). If you're quite far away from the subject you should still be able to get it all in focus.