just an eagle in a tree: here is an eagle setting in a tree it's straight out of the camera with no pp. Please feel free to bash it or pp it. shot with a k5 and big sig at f8 1/2000th...

JC56 Loc: Lake St.Louis mo.

here is an eagle setting in a tree it's straight out of the camera with no pp. Please feel free to bash it or pp it. shot with a k5 and big sig at f8 1/2000th iso 800 it was sunny and bright with a low sun.

eagle in a tree

Heirloom Tomato Loc: Oregon

I like the pose, and the composition. Color is good too. The problem is poor focus on the bird. It is blurry. I could crop this and make a very attractive art piece out of it with more apparent sharpness, but you have given a negative opinion on my "messing with people's photos" in the past, so I will refrain.

Bob Yankle Loc: Burlington, NC

There are some apparent distractions in the left margin of this photo. I would recommend you crop about 20% from the left border.

Linda From Maine Loc: Yakima, Washington

Crop, brighten, adjustments to levels, sharpen, clone. Am not suggesting that my amateur edits, other than crop, made it "better" :)

Perhaps a good candidate for the pp section:
http://www.uglyhedgehog.com/t-176708-1.html

Bob Yankle Loc: Burlington, NC

Linda From Maine wrote:

Crop, brighten, adjustments to levels, sharpen, clone. Am not suggesting that my amateur edits, other than crop, made it "better" :)

Perhaps a good candidate for the pp section:
http://www.uglyhedgehog.com/t-176708-1.html

Linda, this is a distinct improvement to the original.

Linda From Maine Loc: Yakima, Washington

Bob Yankle wrote:

Linda, this is a distinct improvement to the original.

My cloned spots need blending or something - next up on my learning curve :)

minniev Loc: MIssissippi

JC56 wrote:

here is an eagle setting in a tree it's straight out of the camera with no pp. Please feel free to bash it or pp it. shot with a k5 and big sig at f8 1/2000th iso 800 it was sunny and bright with a low sun.

Linda has made some improvements by getting rid of the distractions along the left side and sharpening the bird as much as is possible. The sad fact is that he is not sharp (I'm wondering if this is a crop of a larger picture) and it's limited as to what you can do to get him that way. You had enough lens and enough shutter speed. Handheld maybe? or tripod slippage? Have suffered from both those ills myself, and I have some of eagles taken from a boat that turned out similarly. We can print them small and be satisfied, but when looked at large, the softness shows. The lighting isn't kind either, as there is harsh contrast between his shadowed front/side and his sunlit side. Did you get one with his profile? Eagles seem to look best from the side view or an angled view where you can see their impressive beaks. Why won't they pose properly?

After meeting eagles on multiple occasions, I have yet to come away with what I'm looking for. They are not easy. If this lovely guy lives near you, please keep after him.

CResQ Loc: Cobble Hill, BC

JC56 wrote:

here is an eagle setting in a tree it's straight out of the camera with no pp. Please feel free to bash it or pp it. shot with a k5 and big sig at f8 1/2000th iso 800 it was sunny and bright with a low sun.

I am not an expert in taking pictures of birds but a couple of tips that will help you next time you have the opportunity like this are to change the metering mode from center weighted to spot. By doing that you are telling the camera to evaluate a much smaller area, your eagle is a small target in a large expanse of sky. Not sure where your point of focus was but the eagle's head is quite out of focus. Also lower the ISO, use a slower shutter speed to compensate, that will help to cut down the noise in your picture. Cheers, Mark

JC56 Loc: Lake St.Louis mo.

Linda From Maine wrote:

My cloned spots need blending or something - next up on my learning curve :)

you did a good job but it looks a tad over sharpened.....when you figure out blending please show me how to do it.....I didn't give you much to work with......eagles are my favorite subject...but they are hard as hell to get right.

JC56 Loc: Lake St.Louis mo.

[quote=CResQ]I am not an expert in taking pictures of birds but a couple of tips that will help you next time you have the opportunity like this are to change the metering mode from center weighted to spot. By doing that you are telling the camera to evaluate a much smaller area.

Thanks.... that's some good advice.

JC56 Loc: Lake St.Louis mo.

minniev wrote:

Linda has made some improvements by getting rid of... (show quote)

LOL.........Tell me about it......... I've been chasing these baseballs for 4 or 5 years......99.9 go to the re-cycle bin this one should have been included.

JC56 Loc: Lake St.Louis mo.

Heirloom Tomato wrote:

I like the pose, and the composition. Color is good too. The problem is poor focus on the bird. It is blurry. I could crop this and make a very attractive art piece out of it with more apparent sharpness, but you have given a negative opinion on my "messing with people's photos" in the past, so I will refrain.

Ms. Tomato,
This is a critique spot...negative is encouraged....give it a try...I may not like it but we all look through different eyes.

JC

Heirloom Tomato Loc: Oregon

JC56 wrote:

Ms. Tomato,
This is a critique spot...negative is encouraged....give it a try...I may not like it but we all look through different eyes.

JC

This version has slight posterization. Unfortunately the noise in the sky turned into spots, but of all the versions I tried, this one gave the most definition to the blurry eagle.

JC56 Loc: Lake St.Louis mo.

thanks for the try....eagles have to be good in the camera....no amount of pp can fix them.... it's not your pp skills it's my lack of photo skills.

jc

Heirloom Tomato Loc: Oregon

JC56 wrote:

thanks for the try....eagles have to be good in the camera....no amount of pp can fix them.... it's not your pp skills it's my lack of photo skills.

jc

Better luck next time, JC. Birds in flight, or anywhere, are not easy to shoot. You need luck, skill and a hyper-expensive lens doesn't hurt, either. I don't have any bird shots good enough to post, my camera and lack of quick reflexes make that something I just don't do. I am always amazed when people get them, and they are sharp.