Picture of Heron

[Nezodon]

Exif
Camera: Canon 450D
f/8
1/500 sec
ISO 160 <-- suspect this might be my main issue with picture quality
Focal length 300mm
Weather: dull

I had problems framing the picture - which is cropped -, I didn't want to centralize the heron, but all the empty space seems to make it a bit dull and uninteresting. Also the water looks a bit 'swamp like'. Is their anything I could have done to improve this picture when I was taking it?

I do alot of photography at nature reserves, parks, forests, and so forth. This picture highlights some of the most common problems I seem to find.

Thanks

[AndrewPDX]

Alright, don't know why this hasn't had more attention, as it's a decent starting image and you're asking some valid questions. I'm by no means an expert, but hey, I'm on the internet, so I might as well throw my opinion around.

First things first. You've got that cool red/green grass reflection in the water. Problem is, the reflection is running right into the heron's head. If you had gotten lower and moved a bit to the left, that grassy reflection would have followed the curve of the bird's neck and that empty patch where the grass is really thin would have been perfectly framing his head. Would have been a great effect. Oh well. Next time.

2ndly. You've got that dirty shoreline in the background. Lose it. "Heron standing on a shoreline in perhaps endless water" is much more interesting than "heron standing in tiny pond." You're the photographer, so you get to create the scene.

Most importantly, photography is all about lighting. It's a bummer that your shooting day was overcast and dull, as it definitely creates a flat image. Playing with filters, saturation, white balance (shoot in raw if you can) will definitely help an image, but getting the right light off the bat is a huge bonus. If that place is close by, why not go back an hour before sunset and camp out. If you wait long enough, some wildlife is bound to come by and be all glowy with that nice, orange, evening light.

Anyway, it's not a bad picture at all. Keep working on lighting and framing and you'll start getting some sweet shots!

[Nezodon]

Originally Posted by AndrewPDX

Alright, don't know why this hasn't had more attention, as it's a decent starting image and you're asking some valid questions. I'm by no means an expert, but hey, I'm on the internet, so I might as well throw my opinion around.

First things first. You've got that cool red/green grass reflection in the water. Problem is, the reflection is running right into the heron's head. If you had gotten lower and moved a bit to the left, that grassy reflection would have followed the curve of the bird's neck and that empty patch where the grass is really thin would have been perfectly framing his head. Would have been a great effect. Oh well. Next time.

2ndly. You've got that dirty shoreline in the background. Lose it. "Heron standing on a shoreline in perhaps endless water" is much more interesting than "heron standing in tiny pond." You're the photographer, so you get to create the scene.

Most importantly, photography is all about lighting. It's a bummer that your shooting day was overcast and dull, as it definitely creates a flat image. Playing with filters, saturation, white balance (shoot in raw if you can) will definitely help an image, but getting the right light off the bat is a huge bonus. If that place is close by, why not go back an hour before sunset and camp out. If you wait long enough, some wildlife is bound to come by and be all glowy with that nice, orange, evening light.

Anyway, it's not a bad picture at all. Keep working on lighting and framing and you'll start getting some sweet shots!

Thanks for the feedback, wanted to start off with a picture which I thought would come out well but didn't.

I have been thinking of getting a polarized filter for outdoor shooting, I love shooting outside but I never get the same results I get when I'm playing indoors. Guess will need to play around a few more options. I will try shooting in RAW for a bit, but my editing skills are limited, but I suppose gives me something new to try out, my camera allows me to take the same shot in both RAW and JPEG, might try that so I can compare as well.

Thanks again, will try taking the same shot again and see if I can improve it

[Jim Poor]

A bit of flash would have helped.

The biggest issue, however, is that you missed the focus point. Look closely and you will see that the point of focus is at the lower edge of this image. The bits of muck are sharper than the subject.