Soar

[windrider86]

I found this guy sitting in a tree but spooked him as I tried to get closer (need to get a stronger telephoto lens) But I am not sure of the background. What are your thoughts on the blue sky? Does it look fine with just the blue sky or would it bring the bird out more if it had more clouds in the background?

[xxpinballxx]

I think its a terrific shot! I am a fan of BIF with a totally blue sky. I have a few in my stream. I think its got great sharpness and the crop you did on it is perfect. I love the angle of the birds body and the head looking back in the other direction.....I might have left even more blue sky above and to the right but not much more...
Good timing and great shot!

[neonfish3]

I think it's a great shot!
But the crop seems... odd, to me.
I would rotate it 90° CW.
Did you run a noise reduction on it? The feathers seem very soft in spots. You could run the noise reduction on a duplicate layer and erase the effect over the bird to keep the feathers sharper.

[windrider86]

Thanks Pinball. I've been trying to get a shot like this for a very long time.
and yes neon I did do a noise reduction as after cropping it down (the blue was way too huge and overpowering) is did seem to soften some fo the feathers. I noticed that as well. Thanks for the suggestion and will try and overlay and see how that works out

[windrider86]

ok what do you think? I almost think I prfer the tighter crop

[Taallyn]

You know I think I like the second posting better. The faint bit of clouds gives some interest to the sky and does show that it is sky rather than a Photoshoped background. The space on the right side give the bird the room it needs to move into, although there might be a tad too much there. Also, you might try bringing the highlight on his chest down a little. It looks very close to being blown out. The rest of him/her is nicely detailed though. It is a fine capture.

[xxpinballxx]

I like the first it a more unique angle....the second is what you expect in Birds in flight shots. Both look good but I like the first.

[WooD]

Super great capture. I like the first one best.

[FocalFrenzy]

I like the 1st shot best as it is a unique angle. I have tried many times to get a shot like this. Usually, I get the bird "Zoomed" in, and just as I start to trip the shutter, off he goes. By the time I change my settings for a stop action shot, he's 2 counties over. Lol. You've got a great capture here, with the added bonus of, crisp outline, uncluttered background. This will make it very easy to merge this bird into another shot. Editing "fun" for a rainy day.

[windrider86]

OK one last edit. I too liked the first one because it is "different" but I had to try it with clouds. The first and the second had no editing other than a tiny bit of boost on the blue on a noise removal