I like the background lavender color, and the overall texture of the weave of branches. Yes I do think the original is a bit busy without a strong central theme to draw your eye away from the the background. Focus is a bit soft- but could be improved with careful sharpening, I'd pump up the color of the bird with a bit of saturation, and I think the vignette from the Tomato's is a brilliant fix TO YOUR ORIGINAL REQUEST about if the photo is too busy.

I do take issue with JC56's contribution to this is that is is junk being out of focus and leave it alone- no fixing it his is the very last word- no one else need contribute. This is critique and this is the sort of things you are asking about... And I take specific umbrage to the rest of his rant saying and no one is allowed to demonstrate what their fix might be. No one can mess with the original- the photographer has it- in this section- unless specifically requested- have at it.

If you are not interested in improving an image- but simply want a pat on the back, post it elsewhere.

In a critique, and I have had to stand up in front of many, you are baring your soul in it, asking for the blatant truth in order to learn. There are adjustments that can be applied in other photos in similar situations that we can all learn from. A visual representation is worth 1000 words.

SO in that spirit- in order to demonstrate that my sugestions may be seen as a way to improve things - or not. ( that is left up to the discretion of the OP)

Note my vignette is a bit of lavender selected from the image rather than white. I sharpened the whole image- made a mask to hide it all, then, in the mask, brushed in where the sharpening appears, on the whole bird and the branches around him - to enhance the bokeh effect, and increased the saturation on the bird.

I think you have a hangable photo IMHO. BTW it appears much lighter once posted- i prefer it darker as it appears on my screen- even though I did not adjust this.

I like the background lavender color, and the overall texture of the weave of branches. Yes I do think the original is a bit busy without a strong central theme to draw your eye away from the the background. Focus is a bit soft- but could be improved with careful sharpening, I'd pump up the color of the bird with a bit of saturation, and I think the vignette from the Tomato's is a brilliant fix TO YOUR ORIGINAL REQUEST about if the photo is too busy.

I do take issue with JC56's contribution to this is that is is junk being out of focus and leave it alone- no fixing it his is the very last word- no one else need contribute. This is critique and this is the sort of things you are asking about... And I take specific umbrage to the rest of his rant saying and no one is allowed to demonstrate what their fix might be. No one can mess with the original- the photographer has it- in this section- unless specifically requested- have at it.

If you are not interested in improving an image- but simply want a pat on the back, post it elsewhere.

In a critique, and I have had to stand up in front of many, you are baring your soul in it, asking for the blatant truth in order to learn. There are adjustments that can be applied in other photos in similar situations that we can all learn from. A visual representation is worth 1000 words.

SO in that spirit- in order to demonstrate that my sugestions may be seen as a way to improve things - or not. ( that is left up to the discretion of the OP)

Note my vignette is a bit of lavender selected from the image rather than white. I sharpened the whole image- made a mask to hide it all, then, in the mask, brushed in where the sharpening appears, on the whole bird and the branches around him - to enhance the bokeh effect, and increased the saturation on the bird.

I think you have a hangable photo IMHO. BTW it appears much lighter once posted- i prefer it darker as it appears on my screen- even though I did not adjust this.

I like the background lavender color, and the overall texture of the weave of branches. Yes I do think the original is a bit busy without a strong central theme to draw your eye away from the the background. Focus is a bit soft- but could be improved with careful sharpening, I'd pump up the color of the bird with a bit of saturation, and I think the vignette from the Tomato's is a brilliant fix TO YOUR ORIGINAL REQUEST about if the photo is too busy.

I do take issue with JC56's contribution to this is that is is junk being out of focus and leave it alone- no fixing it his is the very last word- no one else need contribute. This is critique and this is the sort of things you are asking about... And I take specific umbrage to the rest of his rant saying and no one is allowed to demonstrate what their fix might be. No one can mess with the original- the photographer has it- in this section- unless specifically requested- have at it.

If you are not interested in improving an image- but simply want a pat on the back, post it elsewhere.

In a critique, and I have had to stand up in front of many, you are baring your soul in it, asking for the blatant truth in order to learn. There are adjustments that can be applied in other photos in similar situations that we can all learn from. A visual representation is worth 1000 words.

SO in that spirit- in order to demonstrate that my sugestions may be seen as a way to improve things - or not. ( that is left up to the discretion of the OP)

Note my vignette is a bit of lavender selected from the image rather than white. I sharpened the whole image- made a mask to hide it all, then, in the mask, brushed in where the sharpening appears, on the whole bird and the branches around him - to enhance the bokeh effect, and increased the saturation on the bird.

I think you have a hangable photo IMHO. BTW it appears much lighter once posted- i prefer it darker as it appears on my screen- even though I did not adjust this.