2018 Project 52 - 4th Qtr - Sandy (Skitterbug)

[skitterbug]

I just don't know........ hummmm Okay opinions welcome - of course.

[Geoff F]

I suspect that you either need to show all of the legs or remove them completely by a slightly tighter crop at the bottom. And use all of the spare space on the left; so he has some space to look towards.

That edit is almost perfect, just a few more little tweaks . . .

[Shadowman]

I prefer the full shot of the birds, I've run into similar situations shooting people and the option while shooting was change my position and risk losing the shot or take the shot and modify as needed. With people cropped legs from natural barriers are to me sometimes just as good as actually cropping the image.

[skitterbug]

I suspect that you either need to show all of the legs or remove them completely by a slightly tighter crop at the bottom. And use all of the spare space on the left; so he has some space to look towards.

Hi Geoff - I may eventually get the chance to try and photograph him again. He seems to think that the song birds we have are for his meals. He is becoming a bit more bold about staying put thinking that we can't see him. So maybe I'll get lucky. In the meantime, here is another attempt for a crop of #2 in post #34

[skitterbug]

I prefer the full shot of the birds, I've run into similar situations shooting people and the option while shooting was change my position and risk losing the shot or take the shot and modify as needed. With people cropped legs from natural barriers are to me sometimes just as good as actually cropping the image.

Thank you John. I do understand what Geoff and Joe are thinking about cropping to show the hawk's front quarter of his body but I miss seeing him standing in the bird bath. I also like the downy feathers behind his legs. Although this hawk seems to be getting bolder, he is careful to always have something between me and him. The area we feed our birds is very compact with plenty of tree limbs, etc. so trying to maneuver around to even see him in a better setup is limited - and that's only if he co-operates. He doesn't sit on a telephone pole or at the top of a tree. He hides. So you are correct, I take what I can get and hope that at some point I'll come away with a really sharp one!

Thanks for commenting! I appreciate your opinions!

[Cantab]

Thank you John. I do understand what Geoff and Joe are thinking about cropping to show the hawk's front quarter of his body but I miss seeing him standing in the bird bath. I also like the downy feathers behind his legs.

Sandy, I think I agree with you and John. Although the crop works in many ways, you lose a lot of the bird in the process.

[skitterbug]

Sandy, I think I agree with you and John. Although the crop works in many ways, you lose a lot of the bird in the process.

Hi Bruce - This photo gave me several ways to look at it and it has been an interesting exercise dealing with post processing ideas. It helps when others comment on what they see and how to deal with the situation. My preference is seeing the entire bird but the closer crop brings out this hawk's intense look too.

Thank you for sharing your thoughts!

[billtils]

A bit late to this thread Sandy, but perhaps not a bad thing as it gave the chance to read the other comments. To me the second one is almost superb but the way the rear merges into the background spoils it and although cropping solved that issue, to me it left you with a not so good image.

On the other hand there's not much wrong with the first one technically, just not so much oomph in the composition, but it's the one I'd keep.

[rudi]

Trying to catch up here Sandy, good nice pictures, with the hawk being my favourite...

[rudi]

Week 42

The next is the appearance of the woolly worm. It is an indicator of how our winter weather will be according to its bands of color. It is folklore but many times what it predicts will be so!

Woolly Worm - f/5.6 - 1/640ss - ISO640

I do speak a few languages and I know a few things about colors, but I do not understand 'worms'.....
I am curious what the worms colors are 'saying' about next winter....

[skitterbug]

with the hawk being my favourite...

Hi Rudi - Glad you like my photo efforts. The Hawk was a challenge. I may have more chances to try again since he's been back for meals. He is a youngster and not too adapt yet with his technique of hunting and capture of his food. It is amusing to watch his efforts. I would guess that the songbirds would wish for him to go somewhere else! <chuckle>

I do speak a few languages and I know a few things about colors, but I do not understand 'worms'.....
I am curious what the worms colors are 'saying' about next winter....

This woolly worm is telling us that the start of winter will be very harsh, then the middle part should be milder with plenty of snow and finally the last part will be cold and harsh again. If this woolly worm has his way, we will probably have winter lasting longer than it should. I'm hoping that the worm is totally wrong.

I'm glad you are back! And thanks for commenting!

[rudi]

….
This woolly worm is telling us that the start of winter will be very harsh, then the middle part should be milder with plenty of snow and finally the last part will be cold and harsh again. If this woolly worm has his way, we will probably have winter lasting longer than it should. I'm hoping that the worm is totally wrong. ....

Though the interpretation makes sense now, I also hope its wrong.....

[skitterbug]

Though the interpretation makes sense now, I also hope its wrong.....

Me too Rudi! Wrong in this case would be good!

Enjoy your day!

[skitterbug]

Week 44 - The Veterans of Foreign Wars have a display of this tank and an army truck. They recently sold the building and land and plan to move or disband their post. Not sure what is happening for them. So I have been concerned they would move their display before I found an opportunity to try my hand for a photo shoot. I finally got the chance to see what I could do. What I discovered is that the army tank is placed awkwardly for a decent background since the interstate highway's off ramp is located behind it. <sigh>

So that meant that I wanted to remove "stuff" during post processing. I'm going to post the before/after for comments.

Camera settings used - ISO100 - f/16 - 1/125

Before......




After.......

[Geoff F]

The edit works well, Sandy.

[skitterbug]

The edit works well, Sandy.

Thank you Geoff!

[Round Tuit]

Good cloning job for getting rid of the off ramp. The fence in front of the tank could use a little more work.
Have you considered taking a 45° angled shot rather than a straight side view?

[skitterbug]

Good cloning job for getting rid of the off ramp. The fence in front of the tank could use a little more work.
Have you considered taking a 45° angled shot rather than a straight side view?

Hi André - I'm not sure what area you are noticing (In Post #54)? Do you mean the wooden fence area or the guard rails along the exit ramp? I enlarged the photo and I am totally missing what you are noticing.

I did take some different poses of that tank and since you asked, I took another look at the collection. I think maybe this one is okay. Whoever put these pieces of machinery where they did, certainly wasn't thinking about a pleasing background for photos.... <sigh>

[Shadowman]

Nice effort, the profile shot is good for identifying the model, to really showcase the vehicle you'd want to shoot at an angle and preferably from a low vantage point where background wouldn't be so distracting.

[Round Tuit]

Hi André - I'm not sure what area you are noticing (In Post #54)? Do you mean the wooden fence area or the guard rails along the exit ramp? I enlarged the photo and I am totally missing what you are noticing.

I did take some different poses of that tank and since you asked, I took another look at the collection. I think maybe this one is okay. Whoever put these pieces of machinery where they did, certainly wasn't thinking about a pleasing background for photos.... <sigh>

Hi Sandy - I may just be overly critical but the area where the wooden fence was shows a vertical repeating pattern that does not look natural to me. The only reason that I mentioned it is because you did such a good job on the highway off ramp.

From a composition point of view, I prefer the corner shot to the side view.