agillot

number 2 .

crafterwantabe Loc: Mn

Very nice shot... #2 is my choice

Butterflies Loc: Dallas TX

Very nice picture. I like the second one better. The sky on the left balances out the water on the right, and the rocks shows the owls surrounding and habitat.

DebAnn Loc: Toronto

Definitely #2 for me.

artesdecobo

Cherihorn,

First, this is a great owl shot! It is not easy to capture this bird in daylight, so well done!

IMHO, your background has several competing horizon elements, trees that are not perfectly vertical, a vertical metal fence post and horizontal cable, the rock wall/concrete pad and the waterline. As such, the background seems to take away from the subject which might be why you are struggling with your crop.

Here is another crop option, for what it is worth (and if your contest rules allow). I took your jpeg and cropped it even further to eliminate everything but the metal post and cable, then adjusted contrast to darken the remaining background which had two effects. It eliminated the post/cable (resulting in no apparent horizon) and "popped" the owl.

Other positive judging elements: The bird has "room to fly", it is entirely in focus with good catch light in the eyes, the wing position (up or down) is very desirable to many judges. The only thing that might have further improved this image would be for the bird to be flying more into the frame with the beak visible, however, the shielding of the beak might be considered by some to be a desirable way to convey the stealthiness of this efficient bird of prey.

Well done and good luck with your contest entry.

Bubba

(Download)

frankraney Loc: Clovis, Ca.

Number 2. Yes a better composition, and quite a bit sharper.

SENSORLOUPE

The second shot for sure. It show where he is and what he is flying over. It tells the whole story. Very nice!!

Bill_de Loc: US

I like the second one, as is. I thought about cropping the bit of water at the bottom, but changed my mind.

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Earnest Botello Loc: Hockley, Texas

Very good capture, #2 is my choice.

Toment Loc: FL, IL

Number 1. The subject is well placed, flying into open space, his eye is in focus, and the eye is drawn to him.
The rocks are not necessary for context in that he is flying in the air...
All said IMHO...
Nice shot

ski Loc: West Coast, USA

Is #1 a crop? #2 is far superior

wdross Loc: Castle Rock, Colorado

This is similar to what I was envisioning. I would even center the owl a little more while still leaving room to the left to "fly" into. That way the owl becomes the only real subject of interest. Then the wings down, with the eye peering over the one wing at me, makes a totally different shot from the more common bird/environment shot. Taking out all environment distractions and leaving the owl as the only subject of interest makes this a very powerful image in my opinion.

cheineck Loc: Hobe Sound, FL

raymondh Loc: Walker, MI

I think the background has too much going on and detracts from the closer focus on the bird that #1 supports.
I favor the more scenic #2.

khildy Loc: Brownsburg, IN

I'm with Bob #2 with (because of) the rocks