Sparrowhawk

[William Dickson]

• William_Dickson 9
• ALL_RIGHTS_RESERVED
• Adobe Photoshop Camera Raw 16.4 (Macintosh)

Canon 1DX Mk2
f/4 400mm Do Mk2
f/6.3
1/800
ISO6400

Another frame from my encounter with this Sparrowhawk. HH. ACR and PS

Will

 

[Jonathan Ashton]

Wow that is an encounter, the big thing for me is that it looks entirely natural. The position in the grass and the head on view and super colours. The shallow DOF works well on this image for me.

 

[Brian Sump]

Hey Will, I seem to remember this fella. Didn't you have some shots previously?

Regardless, I like this overall. Here, IMO dof is not a issue/point of emphasis because everything is drawing in to the eyes. I like your composition with the eyes adjusting more to thirds than centered and man do they pop! Nice touch up work with the yellows.

The little bit hanging from the beak tells a nice story about this fierce hunter. Nice palette warmth and tones.

One idea you can play with is reducing contrast in the beak a bit to help the contrast in the eyes really pop. Just an idea, not sure how the effects would turn out.

Thanks for sharing this Will!

 

[Steve Kaluski]

The low level POV works Will and I very much like the FG mush. The eye contact is good, but the yellow and reds I feel are a bit pushed, personal choice. A bit more 'guts' would be nice as these are ferocious eaters and its adds to the story in my book. You will see what I mean in a few weeks time, but unlike here you will need to push yourself and break that comfort mode of low SS/ISO and move onto the world of Electronic shutter, definitely not Mechanical!

TFS
Steve

 

[Daniel Cadieux]

The low angle and head-on stare make this image for me! If anything I do feel the subject is a bit large in the frame, but I suppose in a way this makes the down-the-barrel pose even more "in your face". I love the feathers caught in the grass!

 

[William Dickson]

Thanks for the comments, much appreciated. Hi Brian, yes I took over one hundred shots of this bird, and posted a few in the past. Couldn't believe it when the Sparrowhawk took down a Starling just outside my house. Photographed it, plucking the bird, before it eventually flew off with it.

Will