I took this photograph of a Clark's grebe earlier this summer when I was in Yellowstone. While I was watching it through the viewfinder I thought that the specular highlights in the water seemed interesting. I know that some have criticized PF lenses for their rendering of highlights, but after examining afterwards, I don't find them that bad. I'm curious as to how other's think of the highlights. Too distracting, or does it add to the atmosphere of the photo?

Lovely grebe image! In this shot, I would be tempted to remove the purish white circles and leave the smaller and softer circles. Then depending on how the image looked, I might also try removing the very large circles in the foreground along the bottom and near the reflection of the head.

I think the final decision is up to the photographer.

I like the high lights, they add to the composition. It would have been a much different shot without them.

Super cool photo

Tim that's a very good capture and I like the highlights. I agree with Karen - It really is good to go but I would personally be tempted to remove the brightest 5 or 6 as well as clean up the bottom 25% of highlights. I find the bottom lot more "distracting" that the brightest spots higher up

Ditto the comments made by @Butlerkid and @Winston Churchill (Sir) .

I think the fluffy circles give it an artsy/fantasy appearance, and I like that, but I can see where they might be a distraction to others, depending on how they look at it. I would like it with or without the circles.

I quite like it the way that it is, and think the highlights add to the shot.

Thanks for your comments everyone. Instead of removing the highlights in the photo above I just searched for a shot that had fewer highlights. This is one that I found with fewer of the really bright and large highlights.

nah - the first one is nicer (not that this one isnt)

Agree with Elsa. The pose and "atmosphere" of the first image is stronger than the second.