Little Wings

[Brownbear]

Firstly.. Thank you to everyone for your feedback and honesty about the haze/blur or simply put my creative moment gone awry... Truly appreciated!

Following are a few shots without the haze. I don't like them as much simply because of the poses, the light and because I had some clipping.. Also when I was trying to bring out the whites using the curves tool I made the belly of a couple of the birds grey... But for now they serve the purpose of showing no haze...

Moments before getting down too, low...
1.



2.




Earlier in the morning but the light wasn't right and the look of the pier doesn't appeal to me so I moved and tried to blur it away...

3.



And I couldn't choose which image to work on so I decided to have some fun and put two in one!




After I worked on the above images.. I tried the selection brush in LR and just brushed on extra clarity on all the hazy bits, and sharpened with an unsharp mask. I did this on a small image, very quickly but I think it made a difference so later on I am going to revisit the original ones I posted and see if I can eliminate the haze.

The image I hope to fix!



Thank you to everyone... If you change your mind about the haze after seeing the wooden pier please let me know.

[Mike Buckley]

I think the problem with the white feathers has to do with flat light, not clipping.

[FrankMi]

#3 is really cute Christina!

[Brownbear]

Yes, your likely right and that is why I changed location. But when processing when I try anything the white feathers get clipped super easy, or look grey, etc... They hang around the lake all Spring so I have enough time to try again.

I think the problem with the white feathers has to do with flat light, not clipping.

[Mike Buckley]

But when processing when I try anything the white feathers get clipped super easy, or look grey, etc...

That's a characteristic of flat lighting of the brightest luminosities.

[Brownbear]

Thank you for sharing that Mike... Another reason to avoid flat lighting, ie; not just mountains

That's a characteristic of flat lighting of the brightest luminosities.

[Cantab]

Christina, my immediate reaction when seeing these photos is that you've obviously found a location where the swallows obliging pose for you! What length lens are you using these days for these photos?

[Brownbear]

Hi Bruce,

Actually that is not the case at all. I'm trying to capture them in flight and once in a while they land on the ledge of the pier. Mostly I use my 300 mm lens for all birds because I've learned that if I can get close the image is better (and the light is much better and faster focusing on my 300 mm lens) but for these wee birds in flight I add a 1.4 extender. Also used when they are perched but not always because if they land on the pier I can get close but if they take off to fly well then they are too far away...

In short I prefer to use my 300 mm lens for birds because it is faster focusing and allows more light in... But for little birds in flight the extender is needed to fill the frame, which is still impossible. Yes, a longer lens would be nice for little birds in flight.

Christina, my immediate reaction when seeing these photos is that you've obviously found a location where the swallows obliging pose for you! What length lens are you using these days for these photos?

[Cantab]

Christina, one reason I asked about the lens you're using is that I was watching swallows in flight at one of the lookouts on the Malahat a couple of days ago and was thinking what a hopeless job trying to capture them in flight as they zigzag and careen around in the air!

[deetheturk]

Hi Christina,these are absolutely beautiful images,superb,keep up the great work

David

[John 2]

Yes, your likely right and that is why I changed location. But when processing when I try anything the white feathers get clipped super easy, or look grey, etc... They hang around the lake all Spring so I have enough time to try again.

Christina, the brightness in the white feathers is masking a lot of detail. In actual fact it is all there, even in the jpg. If you have PS or elements with a Highlight/Shadows tool, take the shadows sliders down to zero and adjust the Highlights sliders for the effect that you want. A little mid tone contrast might also help. A little sharpening, I used the NIK output sharpener, and you have feathers. Forgive me for posting your image, but the effect is below. Lovely image BTW.

[bnnrcn]

Hi Christina, I like your shots without the haze very much, especially the one you put the two in one And they really popped up with John's edit.

[Mike Buckley]

John,

It will be interesting to see Christina's reaction to your edit. When Christina objected to the grey tones, I assumed she was objecting to the same grey tones that are in your version and were in my version when I worked with it. I don't know enough about birds to know if the grey tones in your version are realistic. Actually, I know absolutely nothing about birds.

[Brownbear]

Bruce

Yes, they are very difficult to capture in flight. I'm sure that I look like a fool waving my camera around in the air while trying.

I managed it once and in hindsight I think it was because their was a pair of them flying together - Little Wings - ie a larger combined space to focus on.

David and Binnur... Thank you.

[Brownbear]

Hi John,

Thank you for taking the time to try and demonstrate an edit, and for providing instructions with your edit.

It is a beautiful edit, softly done. I have to think about the grey tones because I think their bellies are snow white but of course I can see little bits of grey in my images, too - so that is likely my memory. The only part of the bird that seems a little bit too dark a grey to me is the bit just below the neck line.

The detail you brought out with just the jpeg is beautiful. Thank you for showing me that. Very kind of you to do, and truly appreciated.

Christina, the brightness in the white feathers is masking a lot of detail. In actual fact it is all there, even in the jpg. If you have PS or elements with a Highlight/Shadows tool, take the shadows sliders down to zero and adjust the Highlights sliders for the effect that you want. A little mid tone contrast might also help. A little sharpening, I used the NIK output sharpener, and you have feathers. Forgive me for posting your image, but the effect is below. Lovely image BTW.

[John 2]

You are welcome Christina. There are of course shadows even on snow white areas but all editing is to a large degree subjective. A rough selection of the darker areas and some compensation with the Shadows slider, will correct those areas if you feel they are too dark.

[Wavelength]

Very nice images.... my favorite one is #2.I really like the misty look in the bottom half.....

[Brownbear]

John 2...

I will try an edit this weekend. I'm just getting used to these birds so the next time I photograph them I will try to note the colouring, shadows and lights. Your help and advice is truly appreciated.

Nandakumar...

Thank you. Very nice to know because it was my intent. It is something I'm still not sure about.

Frank...

A belated thank you. Sorry for missing your comment.

[Brownbear]

Following is my edit following John's post processing suggestions. Decreasing the highlights does bring out more detail. My version a little less detailed because I haven't yet made up my mind about the white colouring.



John, Thank you so much for showing and teaching me that. Truly appreciated.

[Cantab]

Christina, I think you edit has turned out very well. The area of the feathers in the brightest light look white, as they would have in real life, but you still have lots of detail in the white areas that are not so brightly lit.