Please critique my Images, Editing and cropping.

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AstroEd

AstroEd

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I am going to do 2 version, One holding the Camera normal, and the other will be same subject but one of my first times holding the camera sideways for the tall framing.

I was driving along a park road and suddenly saw this Red-Tailed Hawk and stopped the car rolled down the wind and leaning over the car console snapped the images, I was almost too close for the 500mm lens, Then I thought to rotate it sideways (Something I rarely try). This bird was about 2-3 car WIDTHS away from me (Not Car Lengths).

The first image is just a straight save right from the camera card exported as a JPG in Lightroom NO EDITING AT ALL. The second one I ran through Topaz Labs Denoise and Sharpen AI and in Lightroom auto adjust for white balance, then slightly (I think) adjusted the colors to try to accent it closer to the sunset golden hour that I took the shot it in and make the sky a bit bluer. the 3rd is a crop of the second.
I had to export to a smaller size (5,000k), the forum would not let me post the 17,500k+ versions. I am not sure how that will affect the original quality or your abilities to critique them.

Camera: D500, Lens: 500mm f/5.6 PF, Exposure: 1/3200th @ f/11
1. How was the original untouched photo? How was my original framing before the crop?

2. How was the editing? Too little, too much etc.

3.. How is the crop? Again too little, too much?

I am still trying to learn my cameras settings and how to do bird photography and I suspect my Camera settings were also wrong, too high on ISO for one.
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I don’t see any real difference between the two sets. Personally I like to frame birds so they’re at the side of the frame, looking into the image. It add perspective, especially if it’s not too cropped. So tne 3 image, for me, is too much.
nice images even so.
 
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My opinions about what you are asking about:

The pics are in need of a little more contrast and saturation. Not a bunch, just a bit.

I would have left a little more room under the tail in the original shot to leave your options open with regard to cropping.

I think that bot crops have too much room over the head. I would want room overhead in the first shot since that is the direction the bird is looking, I would just have less than this.

In these cases I would not put the bird dead center, but off to the side a bit as Patrick said.

Hawks seem to love to be in trees with lots of branches, and it can be tough to get a clean background. I just try to do the best I can in situations like that. There is a little part of the limb above the hawk that goes right to the bird's head. I would have tried moving back, forward, or to a side to avoid this if possible.

All that said, this is quite good for someone who is early on in the learning process. Great job!
 
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Woodyg3 said:
My opinions about what you are asking about:

The pics are in need of a little more contrast and saturation. Not a bunch, just a bit.

I would have left a little more room under the tail in the original shot to leave your options open with regard to cropping.

I think that bot crops have too much room over the head. I would want room overhead in the first shot since that is the direction the bird is looking, I would just have less than this.

In these cases I would not put the bird dead center, but off to the side a bit as Patrick said.

Hawks seem to love to be in trees with lots of branches, and it can be tough to get a clean background. I just try to do the best I can in situations like that. There is a little part of the limb above the hawk that goes right to the bird's head. I would have tried moving back, forward, or to a side to avoid this if possible.

All that said, this is quite good for someone who is early on in the learning process. Great job!
Click to expand...
The reason for the lack of room was I was leaning across the car seat trying to get a framing through the passenger side window. I so wish I was on the small hill across the street with the tripod I think it would have framed much better.
 
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I agree with Woody said. Also, I would crop a bit more aggressively so that the viewer focuses on what I want them to focus on.

BTW, I see your name is AstroEd. Are you into astrophotography too?
 
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Astro,
First that solar photo is really cool. Not a lot to add to stuff already said. I like the portrait vertical view because it gives more room below the tail. These images don’t feel so much like the hawk is falling off the bottom of the image.

One thing to add is nature is messy. Wild creatures do not obey our rules, cater to our desires for the perfect pose or hang around long enough for us to grab the perfect settings. There is always an amount of luck involved shooting wildlife. The way I see it is I’m in their home and am always deeply thankful when wild creatures let me be a tiny part of it and capture an image of them. Any image that I’m fortunate to capture is something to be grateful for. I always strive to do them justice in my photography.

Getting a perfect photo or perfect edit is not what drives me to improve. What drives me to improve is my desire to capture the true beauty of these creatures and to allow other people to see and experience their beauty through my lens.

You have to find your motivation and passion. Then your images will start to look the way you want them. A perfect image to me may be very different than a perfect image to you.
 
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Having branches coming out of the bird's head kills the shot for me. First select a good background and then compose for the subject. It looked like you could have moved a few feet to one side and not had the branches behind the bird.
 
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@AstroEd , I have a question: why are you using f11? I think 500pf is sharp on f5.6 alerady... and 1/3200 is also too fast for a sitting bird. I would go for 1/640 and f5.6, Manual with Auto-ISO. The ISO will drop. The background will be more smooth with f5.6. The editing is ok. I like the second picture more than the first becasue the bird is looking into the camera. I would crop it more tight. Other than that the pictures are very nice, I like the colours, the light and the pose of the bird. Well done!
 
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Sun was going down, I am still learning how to do photographs. I tend to adjust f/ratio and shutter speed until the exposure bar is centered or as close as I can.
 
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AstroEd said:
I am going to do 2 version, One holding the Camera normal, and the other will be same subject but one of my first times holding the camera sideways for the tall framing.

I was driving along a park road and suddenly saw this Red-Tailed Hawk and stopped the car rolled down the wind and leaning over the car console snapped the images, I was almost too close for the 500mm lens, Then I thought to rotate it sideways (Something I rarely try). This bird was about 2-3 car WIDTHS away from me (Not Car Lengths).

The first image is just a straight save right from the camera card exported as a JPG in Lightroom NO EDITING AT ALL. The second one I ran through Topaz Labs Denoise and Sharpen AI and in Lightroom auto adjust for white balance, then slightly (I think) adjusted the colors to try to accent it closer to the sunset golden hour that I took the shot it in and make the sky a bit bluer. the 3rd is a crop of the second.
I had to export to a smaller size (5,000k), the forum would not let me post the 17,500k+ versions. I am not sure how that will affect the original quality or your abilities to critique them.

Camera: D500, Lens: 500mm f/5.6 PF, Exposure: 1/3200th @ f/11
1. How was the original untouched photo? How was my original framing before the crop?

2. How was the editing? Too little, too much etc.

3.. How is the crop? Again too little, too much?

I am still trying to learn my cameras settings and how to do bird photography and I suspect my Camera settings were also wrong, too high on ISO for one.
Click to expand...
I know you are new at this and just learning, but I think you need to place more emphasis on what makes a good image. Keep in mind the standard for a red-tailed hawk is pretty high because it is found in a lot of locations. While leaning across the car makes it more difficult or the only way to get the shot, it does not change the standard for a good photo.

  • Head clearly visible and turn somewhat toward the camera
  • Nothing missing - avoid the bird standing on one foot
  • No intersections - no sticks, branches, or horizon lines intersecting the bird - especially not the bird's head.
  • Even lighting - frontlit or backlit - avoid shadows across the subject
  • Catchlight in the eye
  • In sharp focus - especially when perched
  • Some sort of moment of action or behavior is preferred but a portrait is okay
With an image like this, I'd try to frame it tighter to eliminate some of the branches. I'd also look to clone out sticks and branches that are intersecting the bird - especially the head. The editing looks okay, but a photo of a perched bird needs to be very sharp to be successful. Using Topaz or other tools can refine sharpness in an already sharp image, but is not as good trying to rescue an image with missed focus.

Red-tailed hawks tend to cover the same territory on a regular basis. If you keep going back to that location, you'll probably see it again. Start with the direction of your lighting, then look for backgrounds. If you have those two items in place, you can work the subject and make a nice image.
 
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EricBowles said:
I know you are new at this and just learning, but I think you need to place more emphasis on what makes a good image. Keep in mind the standard for a red-tailed hawk is pretty high because it is found in a lot of locations. While leaning across the car makes it more difficult or the only way to get the shot, it does not change the standard for a good photo.

  • Head clearly visible and turn somewhat toward the camera
  • Nothing missing - avoid the bird standing on one foot
  • No intersections - no sticks, branches, or horizon lines intersecting the bird - especially not the bird's head.
  • Even lighting - frontlit or backlit - avoid shadows across the subject
  • Catchlight in the eye
  • In sharp focus - especially when perched
  • Some sort of moment of action or behavior is preferred but a portrait is okay
With an image like this, I'd try to frame it tighter to eliminate some of the branches. I'd also look to clone out sticks and branches that are intersecting the bird - especially the head. The editing looks okay, but a photo of a perched bird needs to be very sharp to be successful. Using Topaz or other tools can refine sharpness in an already sharp image, but is not as good trying to rescue an image with missed focus.

Red-tailed hawks tend to cover the same territory on a regular basis. If you keep going back to that location, you'll probably see it again. Start with the direction of your lighting, then look for backgrounds. If you have those two items in place, you can work the subject and make a nice image.
Click to expand...
Wow that is a lot of informative information. Thank you. It makes me realize I am taking way too many images and not nearly enough good photos. I currently see a bird and get excited and snap away while strongly focusing on keeping the exposure meter centered as possible with f-stop and shutter speed adjustment, (I have ISO on auto) hoping when I get home some are in focus.
 
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AstroEd said:
Wow that is a lot of informative information. Thank you. It makes me realize I am taking way too many images and not nearly enough good photos. I currently see a bird and get excited and snap away while strongly focusing on keeping the exposure meter centered as possible with f-stop and shutter speed adjustment, (I have ISO on auto) hoping when I get home some are in focus.
Click to expand...
We're all that way some of the time. But after a lot of opportunities, we realize that a better photo is usually possible with a thoughtful approach. Sometimes it's a matter of preparing for some great action that is likely in a few minutes - such as when a bird takes off. Raptors usually poop before taking flight. Many birds take off into the wind if there is meaningful wind. Knowing that you may have a minute or two, you can try to exclude distractions and find ways to isolate the subject. With a red-tailed hawk, you might be able to capture them in flight, on take-off, or with a nice tree trunk behind it. Sometimes you know the photo has a problem and you simply learn not to press the shutter or you take the photo only for practice.

There is nothing wrong with taking photos for fun or for practice. I'm teaching a photography class tomorrow for an Audubon group and we'll differentiate between photos for a wall hanger and photos that are for proof or for ID. But as you think about the kind of photo you will print, frame, and hang on your wall, the definition of success is different.

I have a friend that is a birder. He set a standard that he can only count the bird if he gets a photograph of it. It's remarkable what he is able to capture by finding locations and lighting that work with a 70-300 lens.
 
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Sadly This series was out of the blue, I literally stopped in the road and shot through the window expecting it to fly off, it stayed the entire time. I wish I was on the hill with tripod. Only one image has the head unobstructed but sadly it missed another criteria in that it is looking to the right and not turned towards the camera. As for the leg I THINK it was tucked but it never switched feet the entire time and I am seriously starting to wonder if it only has one leg, I am hoping to see it again to get a chance to verify. So no good shots that day.
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Here are all 3. 1st the original unedited image as above, second my edited version, 3rd my crop. I thought it would look better with bird slightly to the left giving more space in the direction it was looking. I worry about my crops a lot.
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EricBowles said:
There is nothing wrong with taking photos for fun or for practice. I'm teaching a photography class tomorrow for an Audubon group and we'll differentiate between photos for a wall hanger and photos that are for proof or for ID. But as you think about the kind of photo you will print, frame, and hang on your wall, the definition of success is different.
Click to expand...
My desire is to someday get good enough to sublimate my images on Glass and aluminum, and maybe mugs and coasters for sale. But I think I am a long way off though I have practiced trying. The Great Blue Heron on a beveled 5" x 7" panel of glass was my very first item I tried to do with my new sublimation printer. The Osprey was my 2nd project and my first attempt on a large 12" x 18" panel of glass, sadly I was new to this and new to using Affinity Photo and I did not resize the image correctly and it came out way too soft, And I messed up my text lol, But I will redo it. The Barred Owl was a test of clear and white coated aluminum 4" x 4" panels in Matte, Semi-Gloss, and Gloss to see how a coaster might look. But I know I have a VERY long way to go and a lot to learn before these become a reality.
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