Pygmy-Owl

[Marco74]

This Saturday, I spent some time with a few friends looking for the Mountain tiny Pygmy Owl,
Here are some shots. I am looking for honest, constructive Critique. Don't worry about writing what you think without any scrupling

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[ButlerKid]

Technicals and compositions are very nice. Subject is interesting.

The first 4 images appear to be the same. Is the only difference where the owl is looking? The image shows the owl's environment and the owl itself is nicely separated and exposed. The very dark limb is distracting to me. Your other images are stronger, IMHO. With shots so similar, it might be best to pick the best one (in your opinion) when asking for critique.

Of the next two I prefer the second image where the owl is looking into the camera. That is my favorite of the set.

And the last image is very well done and my second pick of the set.

 

[Braxton L]

I only see four images. I like the third one the best. Awesome bird, poses and compositions are nice, I’m not going to suggest getting closer because owls are sensitive and I wouldn’t have gotten any closer either, but I do kinda wish they were less cluttered, but in this case it’s hard to control that. Technically they look really nice. If you have photoshop, try removing the almost vertical branch in the third photo just to the right of the owl. There are a few others branches throughout the shots that might be worth trying to remove. Nicely done!

 

[ButlerKid]

I only see four images.

He deleted the duplicates.....

 

[Marco74]

He deleted the duplicates.....

Yes, you have a right. Unfortunately, I made a mistake during the posting. It was strange because I deleted the other copy immediately after posting it. Probably not enough faster...

 

[Marco74]

I only see four images. I like the third one the best. Awesome bird, poses and compositions are nice, I’m not going to suggest getting closer because owls are sensitive and I wouldn’t have gotten any closer either, but I do kinda wish they were less cluttered, but in this case it’s hard to control that. Technically they look really nice. If you have photoshop, try removing the almost vertical branch in the third photo just to the right of the owl. There are a few others branches throughout the shots that might be worth trying to remove. Nicely done!

All the photos are shots in DX format to get a "closer" look.
I prefer to do it on the field to have less work at home.

I have the Adobe Photography plan that includes Photoshop. Still, my knowledge is limited, and the few times I tried to remove a distracting object from my photos, I left behind a lot of artefacts, and the result was worst. So, now I prefer to limit my workflow to the most common modifications like contrast, noise, sharpening and something similar. Anyway, thanks for the comment.

 

[Marco74]

Technicals and compositions are very nice. Subject is interesting.

The first 4 images appear to be the same. Is the only difference where the owl is looking? The image shows the owl's environment and the owl itself is nicely separated and exposed. The very dark limb is distracting to me. Your other images are stronger, IMHO. With shots so similar, it might be best to pick the best one (in your opinion) when asking for critique.

Of the next two I prefer the second image where the owl is looking into the camera. That is my favorite of the set.

And the last image is very well done and my second pick of the set.

Thanks, Good point of view. Know that you have highlighted the critical issue of the first image, my eyes detect it immediately. Sometimes I am distracted by checking the subject's pose and other details, losing seeing the global picture.

As you already wrote, something was wrong when posting the query. I immediately noted that and removed the other copies but probably at the same time you wrote your comments. Thank you for all.

 

[tomfranic]

Composition of last image is amazing for me, only owl don't look at You. But still ToP

 

[Charles Loy]

Your owl set is a real hoot, I like em all. Looks like the critter moved to different branches, I have never had an owl to do that. Assume you followed him

 

[Marco74]

Composition of last image is amazing for me, only owl don't look at You. But still ToP

Thanks. It wasn't easy to catch the right moment, but the eye detection of the Z9 works very well with the little owl and helps me a lot.

 

[Marco74]

Your owl set is a real hoot, I like em all. Looks like the critter moved to different branches, I have never had an owl to do that. Assume you followed him

One of my best friend leave near the place where the owl lives. This helps me a lot.
Honestly, there is more than one owl. Probably four or more.
We tried several times to take some good pictures. This period of the year is the best because they are less stressed and more confident.
When they fly away, they usually don't go far from the first point, and also, the other birds are nervous when the owl is on the same tree. So, we tried to follow the owl, but we took pictures of two different birds in the end.

 

[MorganP]

Wow, they could make some nice metal prints.

 

[Marco74]

Wow, they could make some nice metal prints.

It is a great idea. Thanks.

 

[Daniel Zdonczyk]

I would choose image number three because of its great eye contact. The head of the bird is slightly tilted forward and it makes it even more interesting. It is a very nice pose.The tree trunk is competing with the image of the bird. Perhaps a solution is to do a vertical crop, start cropping from where the branch curves (is the one where the bird sits) and becomes thinner and then go up to the top of the image. The curve of the branch leads you to the bird and that is a composition complement. Leave space in the front of the bird. Try this and see what happens. I could do it with a screenshot and crop it but I did not want to encroach on your images without permission. After all this is done you still have to deal with the diagonally crossing branch on the right upper side. I hope this helps.

 

[Daveyboy101]

Love #3 Nice shot. A little more crop to remove some of that dead space on the right ,add little mild vignette and the bird will pop !!! Nice shooting. Man I love the look of the 600 mm

 

[Marco74]

Love #3 Nice shot. A little more crop to remove some of that dead space on the right ,add little mild vignette and the bird will pop !!! Nice shooting. Man I love the look of the 600 mm

Thanks for the comment. I always try to reduce my workflow as minimally as possible. Unfortunately, I'm unable to do that, so it is also a tedious passage.
I will need to learn some more tricks.
By the way, my best friend sent the first message of the day highlighting the exit of the new 600 Z.
He will put it in order shortly; I will wait some more time. I'm pretty happy with my lens and honestly less happy to spend money for the upgrade.

 

[Marco74]

I would choose image number three because of its great eye contact. The head of the bird is slightly tilted forward and it makes it even more interesting. It is a very nice pose.The tree trunk is competing with the image of the bird. Perhaps a solution is to do a vertical crop, start cropping from where the branch curves (is the one where the bird sits) and becomes thinner and then go up to the top of the image. The curve of the branch leads you to the bird and that is a composition complement. Leave space in the front of the bird. Try this and see what happens. I could do it with a screenshot and crop it but I did not want to encroach on your images without permission. After all this is done you still have to deal with the diagonally crossing branch on the right upper side. I hope this helps.

Dear Daniel, please use my photos to show me your idea. I probably understand your meaning, but I'm curious to see your interpretation.
I'm not customised to think vertically. I did it sometimes, but often when I review the image on the computer; I prefer the horizontal version 99% of the time.
I'm sure it is my limitation, and your support will be handy.

During the shooting, I take bursts at 15 fps to try the trick of Steve. He has the right, as always, that more picture means more possibility to identify the best shot.
Unfortunately, I went home with too many photos that were very similar, if not equal and choosing the best one was very dull.
The slightly tilted head is from the burst, so I must say thank you, Steve.

 

[Platalea ajaja]

Lot of great suggestions here. I agree the 3rd has the most engaging owl by far. However, the OOF branch in the foreground is a real distraction. I believe you said these are shot in DX mode, did you do much cropping in post? You only need 8.33 mega pixels to display a 4K image. Don't be afraid to crop. You might try cropping out the OOF branch, something like this:

Also, bringing down the highlights in the BG might help.

Great subject and you got some great shots. Thanks for sharing.

 

[Daniel Zdonczyk]

Dear Daniel, please use my photos to show me your idea. I probably understand your meaning, but I'm curious to see your interpretation.
I'm not customised to think vertically. I did it sometimes, but often when I review the image on the computer; I prefer the horizontal version 99% of the time.
I'm sure it is my limitation, and your support will be handy.

During the shooting, I take bursts at 15 fps to try the trick of Steve. He has the right, as always, that more picture means more possibility to identify the best shot.
Unfortunately, I went home with too many photos that were very similar, if not equal and choosing the best one was very dull.
The slightly tilted head is from the burst, so I must say thank you, Steve.

Platalea just did the cropping . Fantastic.

 

[Platalea ajaja]

I like the fourth picture a lot also; the bird isn't as engaging as the third because he's not looking into the frame, but there is nothing in the foreground to distract. However, the large section of bright blue sky in the upper left tends to draw my eye. You might try something like this:

What do you think?

 

[Daniel Zdonczyk]

I like the fourth picture a lot also; the bird isn't as engaging as the third because he's not looking into the frame, but there is nothing in the foreground to distract. However, the large section of bright blue sky in the upper left tends to draw my eye. You might try something like this:

View attachment 48790

What do you think?

It looks good too but your previous crop is more engaging . Thank you for doing the crops.

 

[Marco74]

Lot of great suggestions here. I agree the 3rd has the most engaging owl by far. However, the OOF branch in the foreground is a real distraction. I believe you said these are shot in DX mode, did you do much cropping in post? You only need 8.33 mega pixels to display a 4K image. Don't be afraid to crop. You might try cropping out the OOF branch, something like this:

View attachment 48789

Also, bringing down the highlights in the BG might help.

Great subject and you got some great shots. Thanks for sharing.

Your composition is more interesting, focusing on the subject.
I made a huge mistake on the last day: forgetting the FTZ adapter at home to connect the lens to the Z9.
But I was lucky that my friend had two cameras with him, a D850 and a Z6. Him lens was the 500PF.
So, he gives me the FTZ, and I give him my 1.4x to share the favour.
I shot directly in DX mode to have a better composition on camera, but it could be better with the 1.4x attached and DX.

I'm not a big fan of the heavy cropping of the photos. My primary intent is to have an excellent picture to print larger (often 60x40 cm), and posting the images on the internet is marginal.
So I prefer to make only a tiny crop if strictly necessary.

 

[Marco74]

I like the fourth picture a lot also; the bird isn't as engaging as the third because he's not looking into the frame, but there is nothing in the foreground to distract. However, the large section of bright blue sky in the upper left tends to draw my eye. You might try something like this:

View attachment 48790

What do you think?

It is an excellent version. As for my previous answer, I wouldn't say I like to crop.
The owl is not so confident about getting closer, and I'm not particularly eager to do that, making problems for the animal.
For this reason, I shot DX and left the 1.4x to my friend so both could take good photos without disturbing the tiny owl.
Next time I hope to be less distracted and bring the FTZ. My friend is still searching for a second-hand 1.4x.

 

[Platalea ajaja]

Your pictures and it's your vision, so the only right way to do it is the way you want to do it. The way you want to present your work. That's the only opinion that matters.

For me personally, I am going to crop every image to present the strongest image possible. Very rarely, if ever (at least with bird/wildlife photography), is that going to be SOOC with no crop.

Steve Perry crops. Art Wolfe crops. To me, cropping is a tool just like highlights/shadows. An essential tool to allow you to present the strongest possible image.

But, I can't stress enough, that's my opinion on how I process my images. No right and wrong here.

Your pigmy owl pics are awesome. I look forward to seeing more of your work.

 

[Marco74]

Your pictures and it's your vision, so the only right way to do it is the way you want to do it. The way you want to present your work. That's the only opinion that matters.

For me personally, I am going to crop every image to present the strongest image possible. Very rarely, if ever (at least with bird/wildlife photography), is that going to be SOOC with no crop.

Steve Perry crops. Art Wolfe crops. To me, cropping is a tool just like highlights/shadows. An essential tool to allow you to present the strongest possible image.

But, I can't stress enough, that's my opinion on how I process my images. No right and wrong here.

Your pigmy owl pics are awesome. I look forward to seeing more of your work.

Sorry for my late answer.

You have entirely correct; there is not any problem with cropping.
It is one of my limits, I'm a half engineer (not finished the study), but my mentality is full of rules, numbers, graphs, etc.
One of the strange rules is to avoid cropping more than 10% of the total area of the image.
One of my best friends told me in the past that during a photography competition here in Italy, at a minimum, the judge asks for the original file to check how much the workflow is more robust to avoid strange manipulation.
Theoretically, the crop limit is set to 10%. So I am keeping these rules as a law.
The funny side is that I'm not interested in participating in any photography competition.

Thanks for your comment and your kindness.
Ciao, Marco