Greater Yellowlegs

[Crr008]

I am working on my bird photography and starting to put the pieces together between shooting and post-processing. I'd appreciate any advice on how I can improve with editing this photo or taking this kind of photo next time. I took this photo last year with my new (at the time) Z8 so I was also learning the camera. I know now I need to increase my shutter speed as this little one was flitting back and forth searching for food. All of my diving for food photos were blurry. Also, take note: I was on an observation pier so I couldn't get much lower to the ground although I would have liked to.

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[tclune]

Also, take note: I was on an observation pier so I couldn't get much lower to the ground although I would have liked to.

I like the shot. I expect that, if you had been closer to the ground, the reflection would have been less recognizable.

 

[Butlerkid]

If we are to give post processing suggestions, it would be helpful to know what post processing s/w you are using. That said, you might try lower the exposure for the highlights a wee bit only on the water which should darken the water a bit. Or try increasing the blue saturation only on the water.

 

[NorthernFocus]

Looks pretty good to me, Cindy. Purely as a matter of taste when a reflection is not real sharp as in this case I tend to crop right up to it bringing the subject closer to middle of the frame. That puts more emphasis on the subject and less on the reflection.

 

[Crr008]

I like the shot. I expect that, if you had been closer to the ground, the reflection would have been less recognizable.

Thank you. I hadn’t thought about how getting lower would have changed the reflection. Very good point.

If we are to give post processing suggestions, it would be helpful to know what post processing s/w you are using. That said, you might try lower the exposure for the highlights a wee bit only on the water which should darken the water a bit. Or try increasing the blue saturation only on the water.

Thanks for the suggestions. I did lower the highlights on the picture as a whole but never thought about just lowering it on the reflectIon. I’m still learning Lightroom and all the different ways to edit. It can be very overwhelming. Also, I didn’t think about changing the coloring on the water so I’ll try that and see how it looks.

Looks pretty good to me, Cindy. Purely as a matter of taste when a reflection is not real sharp as in this case I tend to crop right up to it bringing the subject closer to middle of the frame. That puts more emphasis on the subject and less on the reflection.

Thank you. I see your point. I will say I didn‘t like the water where this bird was. It was very shallow with tons a little clumps of ground poking up through the water. To me that feels sort of distracting, even more so than the reflection. It’s one of the reasons I feel if I could have gotten lower, the focus would be more on the bird. Thanks for the feedback.

 

[NorthernFocus]

Thank you. I see your point. I will say I didn‘t like the water where this bird was. It was very shallow with tons a little clumps of ground poking up through the water. To me that feels sort of distracting, even more so than the reflection. It’s one of the reasons I feel if I could have gotten lower, the focus would be more on the bird. Thanks for the feedback.

There are multiple things to consider when deciding how high/low to shoot from. As someone already pointed out a higher position is needed to make a good reflection part of the image. As low an angle as possible best eliminates FB/BG objects. However if getting low causes a bold horizon to split the subject then that may not be the optimum solution. There's no single solution that fits every situation. Though erring on the side of getting low is typically the least of the evils.

One thing you may want to consider is flipping the monitor out so you can position the camera/lens right at ground level to shoot(e.g. on a ground pod). Particularly if limited by shooting from a dock etc it can help get lower. Shooting that way can be disorienting and takes a bit of practice.

 

[Crr008]

There are multiple things to consider when deciding how high/low to shoot from. As someone already pointed out a higher position is needed to make a good reflection part of the image. As low an angle as possible best eliminates FB/BG objects. However if getting low causes a bold horizon to split the subject then that may not be the optimum solution. There's no single solution that fits every situation. Though erring on the side of getting low is typically the least of the evils.

One thing you may want to consider is flipping the monitor out so you can position the camera/lens right at ground level to shoot(e.g. on a ground pod). Particularly if limited by shooting from a dock etc it can help get lower. Shooting that way can be disorienting and takes a bit of practice.

Thanks, Dan. Great suggestions.

 

[K9Kirk]

Most everything has been covered already, but I will add that it's usually best to photograph when the light is best, during the golden hour just after the sun rises and before it sets. With this shot I probably would've used a little 'dehaze' to tone down the light, it's a little bright and washed in appearance. Dehaze would also bring out some of the blue. As far as little clumps, etc. surrounding it, if it's just a little it can be eliminated but sometimes it's just too much to deal with and I think this is one of those. It's unfortunate but that's just the way it is sometimes. Overall, it's a pretty nice shot, a definite keeper.

 

[Crr008]

Thank you. I’ll definitely try the dehaze. I agree about the time of day as it was not optimal. I was on vacation with the family and that was just not possible. Took the practice when I could get it.

 

[jeremyjohnsonphotos]

From a story perspective, the GYL is eating that small fish(?) and your initial concerns about the background being distracting I think are the right intuition. I'd like the emphasis on its eating the thing, or at least not having it obscured in any way. With respect to toning, this is a bit "high key", but that's a style in it's own right and sometimes the right style to use when the light just isn't doing something dreamy. Sometime you just have to work with what you've got, and that's great practice.

Our eyes are naturally drawn to bright areas, and the brightest areas first. In this case, it's the birds chest and then my eyes move outwards to the rest of the bird. The reflection doesn't bother me per se, but it does make the composition a bit taller in a distracting way. Heck, you might just try cropping in to the reflection itself and leaving only the bottom 1/3rd of the bird. It reminds me of shooting sailing regattas on calm days - none of the boats are going anywhere, the water is flat, the sails are flat, so we photographers switch to photographing reflections or emphasizing the reflections. Work with what you got

I use dehaze and sometimes clarity quite often on reflections to make them "pop" a bit more, usually with a mask over the reflection - almost like I was using a polarizing filter.

 

[Crr008]

From a story perspective, the GYL is eating that small fish(?) and your initial concerns about the background being distracting I think are the right intuition. I'd like the emphasis on its eating the thing, or at least not having it obscured in any way. With respect to toning, this is a bit "high key", but that's a style in it's own right and sometimes the right style to use when the light just isn't doing something dreamy. Sometime you just have to work with what you've got, and that's great practice.

Our eyes are naturally drawn to bright areas, and the brightest areas first. In this case, it's the birds chest and then my eyes move outwards to the rest of the bird. The reflection doesn't bother me per se, but it does make the composition a bit taller in a distracting way. Heck, you might just try cropping in to the reflection itself and leaving only the bottom 1/3rd of the bird. It reminds me of shooting sailing regattas on calm days - none of the boats are going anywhere, the water is flat, the sails are flat, so we photographers switch to photographing reflections or emphasizing the reflections. Work with what you got

I use dehaze and sometimes clarity quite often on reflections to make them "pop" a bit more, usually with a mask over the reflection - almost like I was using a polarizing filter.

Thank you for this thorough reply with your ideas. I appreciate it!

 

[bleirer]

One thing I would try is to clean up some of the bits around the frame edge. Though tiny they pull the eye because of the edge. Also I'd remove that orange something midframe on the right side, it draws my eye. Same with some of the bits here and there on the water to give more areas of smooth water. Nice shot, I like you kept the full reflection. Could try it out as a vertical.