Christmas present

[Robert S]

I'm thinking of doing prints as a Christmas present.
Today the light was good in the shade of the tree near the deck. I got serious and used R7 on tripod with gimbal and Sigma 120-300.
I have found it difficult to get good IQ of the red feathers on King parrots. If the light is not good it tends to be mushy red with little definition.
I did fiddling in LRC and a crop to get the images.
Using Topaz Denoise AI did more harm than good imo. See nos.2 which is nos.1 denoised.
What are your opinion of the images?

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[seh]

While the beak is not as interesting as the others I like the perspective of no. 3 with the contrasting colors of the feathers. And no. 5 has that contrast and a great look. The dark spot in the upper left of no. 5 is a bit distracting, could maybe lighten it some. Beautiful bird.

 

[Robert S]

Thanks Seh. Did as you suggested. Looks better.

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[DRwyoming]

Gorgeous bird. FWIW, I prefer the images where the eye is looking at least a bit towards the viewer including this last edit you posted but a couple above as well as opposed to where the bird is looking away from the viewer and out of the frame.

Nice job on the bird and I know what you mean about capturing heavily saturated reds, it can be challenging. To me the biggest issue is the bright mottled background that to my eyes is very distracting. It's not always easy to get the right backgrounds but that bright background isn't great.

 

[Robert S]

Thanks Dave. I'll have a go at the background. 4. and 5. seem to be the ones to print so far.

 

[Lance B]

Lovely portraits. I am a big fan of King Parrots, they have such a lovely temperament.

 

[Robert S]

Lovely portraits. I am a big fan of King Parrots, they have such a lovely temperament.

Thanks Lance. King Parrots are gentle creatures.
Over the next few days I will try building a flat black background. Then if I get some good light I will take more photos. I suppose it could be done using photoshop but after the results on the reds from using Topaz DeNoise AI I think it better to try for new images. If and when I get some I will post them on this thread.

 

[Robert S]

Gave up on the build idea. Moved the tripod and hopefully got a less cluttered background. Hopefully the King Parrots visit later.

 

[Braxton L]

I won’t comment on sharpened/IQ as I’m on my phone. But I would lighten those first two.
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[Robert S]

I won’t comment on sharpened/IQ as I’m on my phone. But I would lighten those first two.
Quick edit
View attachment 72321

Thanks for the adjusted image BAL. I rearranged the perch yesterday morning but the King Parrots did not turn up.
Today the male arrived at about 3.00 pm. Once other birds visit it is a waste of time trying to photograph him. King Parrots are very good natured and get chased away easily.

I took these photos. It seems the light is good. I am shooting almost into the sun but the tree puts the bird in 'shadow'. It seems at this time of day I get good results on the reds. It may be possible to get the full bird in frame but I will need to set up an additional perch. I have until the end of November to get something worthwhile so keep trying.




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[seh]

Love no. 1

 

[Robert S]

Love no. 1

Thanks Seh. I have adjusted the perch. The Rainbow Lorikeet came it worked as intended. The bird sits on the branch and takes food from the small plastic dish. The photos will have the gap in the tree as background as per last photos of King Parrots. This time I should be able to get the full bird. It's about 10.00 am here at the moment. Hopefully about 3.00 pm the King Parrot turns up and does the right thing. I cut the lip off the plastic container to dissuade birds from standing on it.

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[Robert S]

Never work with children or animals.
The King Parrot turned up early. Photo is crap but then too early in the day. Also I need stepladders so that I get the right background. Then I will have to somehow use PP to get rid of the feed dish. Least it gives me something to do. If I ever get the male right I can worry about getting the female.

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[Larry S.]

First…. absolutely gorgeous parrot. You’re so fortunate to have them. My pick in the first set is #5. It’s just personal taste for what I like to see in a wildlife photograph. Sometimes it simply comes down to a process of elimination. The other images are profiles with the bird chewing or eating. #5 shows the parrot turned slightly toward the camera, engaging the photographer. Sunlight on the head gives some tonal variation to all the red. This parrot seems to favor your feeder and you are likely to see more of him… and have further opportunities. Lucky you! Really nice set.

 

[Robert S]

Thanks Larry, glad you liked the photos.

 

[Robert S]

It seems to me that getting detail is more to do with the incident light than a shutter speed, aperture, ISO or WB.

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