Head Angle Fine Points

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After having enjoyed reading this thread, i exchanged some emails with Artie about HA's when photographing hummingbirds. The attached photo shows three different HA's for the same copper-rumped hummingbird photographed last month in Trinidad. They were all taken at the same camera settings, have not had any "final processing" in PS and are only intended for discussion of their HA's. "A" is rotated a few degrees towards the viewer, "B" is at about 45 degrees to the viewer, and "C" is almost directly/90 degrees towards the viewer. Is there a preferred HA, which would you keep or delete?

I am not sure if I responded to this one but here goes anyway: Iin A, I disagree with Peter as as I see it, the bird's head is angled about 1 degree away from the viewer. For me, this is an insta-delete for poor head angle. In B, the bird's head is turned about 8 degrees towards us. Please note that 8 degrees is a lot less than 45 degrees :). B is quite acceptable to me as it is far more pleasing than the head angle in A. In C I'd estimate that the bird's head is angled about 65 degrees towards us. Generally this head angle does not work real well for me--staring right down the lens barrel is usually a great head angle. But with hummingbirds the head angle in C is rather nice as the feathers of the gorget are illuminated very nicely, far better than in A or B.
 
Click here for a lesson on good and bad head angles and related bill angle issues for tight head shots of wading birds...

When you are done, let us know which of these two you prefer. Image A here. Or image B in the next pane.
 

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Hi Artie. I am torn on this one (panels 386/387). I like the slight head tilt in my direction on 386, but you lose sharp focus on the beak due to the very shallow DOF at that range. I think that kills it and I go with 387 (image B).
 
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"B" (387) for me.... What a difference. The OOF "A" bill is distracting. I also like seeing the "true" length of this bird's bill in "B".
Excellent blog Artie. (and I did choose prior to visiting the blog!) Love coming back and reviewing this thread periodically. (I have even gotten my husband, who is strictly a P/S pic-taker, to be alert to HA.) Thanks!
 

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