Head Angle Fine Points

This is a little tougher I think....but I'd take E. In F, I find the bird in an awkward pose ( not saying he is awkward...just seems). In E, he seems very relaxed. Although his head may not be turned towards the camera as much in F, there is nice catchlight and the dof is covering the bill. E it is for me.

Image E. It has the perfect HA for the over the shoulder pose.

I choose E. The head and bill seem to be parallel to the sensor and the bill has better light falling on it, showing detail while the bill in F is black with no detail.

My preference is F.
It seems more intimate because of the slightly increased head turn and better lighting on eye area.

The head angle in E is more square to body, but I think the camera is slightly below the bird so the head needs a tad more turn to be square to sensor.

Dave

I find the HA in image F to be a bit awkward. I feel as though the head is angled 'too much' and the bird would be in an unrelaxed position if it were to keep its head in that position. In image E the bird seems to be in a more natural position and looks as if it is concentrating on something.
I prefer image E.

This is a fun game! Thanks for starting this

Alvan

This is very interesting. I understand that this will help to recognize appropriate head angles for good bird photography. But I find myself being drawn to the wrong photos - to me, image F has more energy, while image E is more neutral - doesn't interact with the viewer as much. Obviously I'm going to have to work on this - thanks for posting these Artie - I would really like to understand this better.

pat lillich said:

This is very interesting. I understand that this will help to recognize appropriate head angles for good bird photography. But I find myself being drawn to the wrong photos - to me, image F has more energy, while image E is more neutral - doesn't interact with the viewer as much. Obviously I'm going to have to work on this - thanks for posting these Artie - I would really like to understand this better.

Click to expand...

Hi Pat, I am glad that you are having a hard time deciding Except for the very first pair, where B clearly had a better head angle (at least by my standards than A), there have been strong arguments in favor of each image. That's why this thread is called "Head Angle Fine Points." I suggest that everyone scroll down this page and read the basics on Head Angle in both "Head Angle Police" and the newer post, "Head Angle Philosphies." BTW, I have made all of this stuff up over the past 28 years so you will not find it anywhere or in any book....

My main intention here is to get folks to consider the finer points of this subject. A quick look at a great many of the images in Avian reveals that there are lots of folks who do not understand the basics of Head Angle. Every day I critique many images that are otherwise fine except for the fact that the bird's head is angled away from the viewer rather than towards the viewer

See Pane next

Going strictly by head angle, I give a very slight advantage to the second image, F, in Pane 39. I like the slightly better view of the gorget, the fact that the face is slightly better lit, and the fact that the head is turned maybe a degree or two towards us). In E, the head is possibly angled a tiny bit left of the centerline of the bird's body. The strong point for E is the slightly raised crest. Do note, however, that the raised crest is 100% serendipitous and has nothing to do with the head angle. So I will gladly keep and optimize both images but give the nod (if you will), by 1/2 degree, to F.

Thanks all for playing. I will be back after lunch with another pair.

To Pat: You got it "right."

To Alvan (and Kaustubh): YAW. For me, both images depict a bird that looks both natural and relaxed.

To Dave: I like your line of reasoning

It Doesn't Get Any Easier Than This One.... Or Does It?

Image G.

Image H.

Which has the better head angle, and why?

Please do not ask me how I got that buff background in Pane #51....

Never mind the above. It was either temporary or temporary insanity.

Both are mighty fine images, and it does not seem to get any easier.

It is really hard to tell on H, and it might just be perfectly square to the sensor.

However, I am drawn to G, which has better viewer contact for me and is more friendly to look at.

I choose G. The eyeball is rotated and looking at the viewer and the head seems to be turned toward the viewer. This may have caused the bill tip to be a tiny bit less sharp than the bill tip in image H but, IMO this is so slight that it doesn't overpower the viewer-to-bird eye contact.

G for me, Artie. I know you say that its not about eye contact. In both images, bird is probably looking at the viewer. But I still find there is more connection with viewer in G. Strong point of H is that eye( and the surrounding area) is slightly better lit. Cant wait to hear your opinion.

Kaustubh Deshpande said:

G for me, Artie. I know you say that its not about eye contact. In both images, bird is probably looking at the viewer. But I still find there is more connection with viewer in G. Strong point of H is that eye( and the surrounding area) is slightly better lit. Cant wait to hear your opinion.

Click to expand...

K, You will have to wait at least a day, maybe two

They both have excellent HAs. IMO, the images are so close in terms of HA that I choose both. Neither HA is appreciably different to trash one or the other.

I would go with C because the eye stripe is more prominant and makes the bird seem more intense, but I woul;d keep them both

Hi Artie - sorry I missed the first few while I was away but it has been a good read. I'm going with G for this one because the bill is so large on the booby that I believe it is an integral part of the picture and in G it is captured with some depth by the slight turn toward us. In H the bill seems flat.

Rachel

geez how did i miss these - great thread - glad I got here in time for this one....


I believe H would be parallel to the plane of the sensor thus the tip of the bill appears to be more covered by the DOF than in G.

G - does appear angled towards you a little - but tip of the bill looks like it is a little soft.

I Choose H - for the tip of the bill being sharper.