Sandhill Crane composition

[Giya]

My folks have a place down in Sarasota, FL that I recently visited. They live on a lake very near a huge wildlife refuge filled with beautiful birds. Fortunately I got lots of great shots of them! Unfortunately the best shots I had of a Sandhill Crane (my parent's favorite) were on the golf course which didn't make for great shooting what with golfers about and what not. So I combined a shot of their backyard and the crane to give my parents a frame-able composition.

First step, I masked out the crane and found a suitable spot for him on the landscape. For a more artistic look I then used both the Graphic Pen and Sumi-e filters. I then blended back in some selective color on the Sandhill's red crest. Everyone down in Sarasota loved it so much they entered it into a local photo contest for me. Fingers crossed!

Original pic of the crane


Original landscape

Final composition

[Quo Fan]

I would move the bird a little closer to the center of the frame, you cut off the tail.

[KJBunn]

I love the tiny little bit of red you left in the composition. It's quite nice.

[gnownad]

It's a really nice end product, although to me, the picture doesn't really focus as much on the crane as I think it's supposed to! More to the centre, or a third line! At the moment the main focus for me is the trees ad their reflection- the red on the cranes head is a good touch though!