[Mackem George]

Trying to obtain images with a more creative appeal,taken at the WILDFOWL WETLANDS TRUST at Washington Tyne Wear.
Any thought anyone ?
GEORGE.

[Tarsiger]

As always, very subjective. For me needs a lower viewpoint and tighter crop and portrait format.
Russ

[Mackem George]

Many thanks for your advice Russ will take that on board.
George.

[Tarsiger]

Thought I should add that I have NO photography skills and am just a birder with a camera! I would take my comment as an 'opinion' rather than 'advice' on that basis, especially as others with far greater expertise may come on here and suggest the complete opposite! I think once you've mastered exposure, depth of field basic sharpness and post processing then its possible to consider more interesting framing and perspective, ideally to come up with something different - although £15k+ worth of camera and lens certainly helps if you can afford it ( not me I hasten to add).
Good luck
Russ

[seaspirit]

In general you should also try to get a catchlights in the eyes. If one can't see details in the eye (iris etc., and even then a catchlight works wonder) this will add life to the eye rather than having just two dead dark lumps of coal.

If your goal is to take photographs that serve for more than reference or ID I would also recommend to look into image composition. Rule of thirds is one to start with, others like providing space for the subject in direction of movement or viewing is another basic one. Subjects centered in the frame rarely work.

[Mackem George]

Many thanks for input.
GEORGE.

[stevo]

For me it would would work better if you stopped down to around f8,then shot from the side rather than the front.Get right down on your belly if needed.

Cheers.

Steve.

[Mackem George]

Thanks for that advice Steve never thought of that idea.
GEORGE.

[Paul Tavares]

I maintain a photo life list. When I come upon a new bird, the first priority for me is to get an image. These vary in quality depending on the circumstances i.e.weather, lighting, patience of the bird (and the photographer), the background, etc. I will often take an insurance shot at distance just to be sure I have at least one image. Sometimes that is the only one I manage to get.

Once that is out of the way I try for two types of shots. 1) close up of the bird showing detail and colour 2) environment and setting type pictures where the bird makes up a smaller proportion of the frame.

Once I have a good quality record shot, I look for upgrades to the shot. If I have a good quality record shot, I discard all poorly focused, badly exposed, poorly composed, photos with distracting elements etc. As another poster mentioned a catch light is essential as is having the eye in focus. Also as he mentioned, leaving space for the bird to move into or to look to is good. It the bird has long legs, don't cut off the legs even though they are hidden in the grass or in the water. If the eye isn't in focus I discard the image.

Perhaps the most important aspect is to visualize the image before you take the picture. Exercise patience before pressing the shutter. Wait for the head to be turned the right way, see if there are distracting elements in the picture (cropping after the fact can sometimes fix this), try for an interesting background etc. If the lighting is too difficult or the setting is not interesting just pass on the photo and move on. This is easier to do on more common birds in a home patch. A little more difficult with a rare bird or when traveling.

I've attached a couple of examples. There are more in my 2014 add and upgrade list, generally the upgrades will be more "creative" than the adds for the reasons mentioned above.

Paul

2014 adds and upgrades to photo life list http://paultavares.smugmug.com/Wildl...AU14/i-vLwsKSB

[Paul Tavares]

A couple of useful references

Chapter 3 in this guide deals with image composition http://www.muskokaphotographyclub.co...hotography.pdf

This one is a little old but still relevant http://digitalbirdphotography.com/windows/contents.html

Paul

http://paultavares.smugmug.com/browse