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A Bluetit (Cyanistes caeruleus) about to take off in the direction of the feeder. I have included the complete uncropped version as V2. Light is late afternoon sunshine a couple of days ago.
Settings: F/5.6 1/320sec ISO400 manual @700mm tripod
Many thanks for your C&Cs for my last Woodpecker upload and a special thank you to Dave and Les for their great mods 
| Camera: | Canon EOS 40D |
| Lens: | Canon 500mm F4L IS + 1.4x extender |
| Recording media: | RAW (digital) |
| Title: | Poised for flight ..... |
| Username: | 
teocali |
| Uploaded: | 20 Mar 2010 - 4:19 PM |
| Tags: | Bird, Blue, Caeruleus, Close-up / macro, Cyanistes, Flight, Garden, General, Poised, Tit, Wildlife, Wildlife / nature |
| VS Mode Rating |
Unrated These stats show the percentage of wins and the rating score that your photo has achieved. You can go to the VS Mode by clicking on this icon. Signup to e2Signup to e2 to see which photo this has won or lost against in the vs mode |
| Votes: | Voting Disabled |
 | Critique Wanted |
| Modifications Welcome (Upload a Modification) |
 | Variant - Before and After |
Comments
great perch makes me envious of that 700 lens will have to save up
Hi
This is a good shot and am glad you uploaded the original image from which I have done my crop in the mod. Had difficulty keeping the sharpness because of the uploaded file size we have to endure but you have the luxury of having the original RAW file so you wont loose any sharpness.
I did the mod the way I did because my only little niggle with this shot is that the pine cones at the bottom looked rather cropped and I have tried to give a sense of where they originate.
However who am I to critisize as I have tried catching these fellows and it is very difficult - they dont stay still for long so well done in the first instance.
Ian
Quote: Hi
This is a good shot and am glad you uploaded the original image from which I have done my crop in the mod. Had difficulty keeping the sharpness because of the uploaded file size we have to endure but you have the luxury of having the original RAW file so you wont loose any sharpness.
I did the mod the way I did because my only little niggle with this shot is that the pine cones at the bottom looked rather cropped and I have tried to give a sense of where they originate.
However who am I to critisize as I have tried catching these fellows and it is very difficult - they dont stay still for long so well done in the first instance.
Ian
Hi Ian
Many thanks for taking the time and trouble to submit your mod. I can see exactly where you are coming from regarding the composition of the pine cones and it is fascinating to see what a completely different dimension it contributes to the image.
Your critique is very welcome as we all see things differently and benefit from each others' observations
Sylvia
Quote: Nice composition Sylvia but the crop has introduced a significant amount of noise compared to the original. I've added a mod with a brief explanation of what's been done.
Graham.
Many thanks Graham for your great Mod and description of how it was processed - very helpful and clearly put I always seem to struggle with bg noise in my bird images and your observations really help.
Sylvia
Quote: Can't help feeling that 400mm is probably the minimum for this type of shot.
Lens cost money though
Adrian
Oops Adrian - must have clicked on the wrong lens used for this before uploading - have amended it - it was taken with my Canon 500mm F/4 L IS + 1.4x converter and yes, it did cost a lot of money 
Sylvia
I like the shot, though V2 has something going for it has lost in V1.
With an APS-C sensor, and iso 400, and 700mm, I think the subject is too small to crop so close, and it has also amplified noise. You have done a good job with it, bit perhaps less cropping might be a better idea. Mod loaded as an example, - you could do a lot better with the original shot.
Regards
W
Some good critique here Sylvia, Great to compare the 2 and to see how much of a crop. It has survived the large crop well, but a little evidence of noise but still that perch steals the show. It is so good I would crop down to show all the perch, or get that hide closer to it...lol
I like this
Richard
Many thanks everybody for your comments -I have really learned from the constructive critiques and find when assimilated this way the advice really sticks on one's mind. A special thank you to Graham, Ian and Willi for the mods - comparing them, together with the critique, makes a wonderful tutorial
Sylvia
Lovely shot Sylvia and I've added yet another variant as a mod!
I agree with Richard and just love that perch, so didn't want to lose any of it - had to clone out the tree but really a shame for the composition that the blue tit isn't looking right over the longer bit of the perch so it could also be less central
Tim
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