Female Cardinal

Gallery: AvianPosted January 16, 2011240 views20 comments

This was taken last February at Cave Creek in Arizona. The dof was very small putting the feet and large parts of the body out of focus. After seeing Sharon's portrait, I decided to see how a crop would work.

7D, 500mm f4 +1.4TC, Black Widow on Gitzo legs, f5.6, 1/100, Av mode with +1.0 compensation, iso 800. Cropped to 3.2 MP from the original 18MP. Taken February 21st, 2010. Normal processing in CS4.

I always appreciate your comments and criticisms.

Thanks,

Comments

20 comments

Comment posted by Steve Balke on January 16, 2011 at 11:50 PM

Fine exposure, detail and color, Dennis. Very nice background. Interesting very sharp reflection in the eye: I can almost make out what she was seeing. I'm not sure about the comp. It emphasizes the "Mohawk haircut" look and makes the bird look a bit strange to me. Just a matter of personal taste though I guess.

Registered on June 18, 2009, 229 Posts, 2915 Comments

Comment posted by Dan Harbour on January 16, 2011 at 11:54 PM

Great detail, beautiful color and light.

Registered on January 4, 2008, 113 Posts, 2416 Comments

Comment posted by SandyRichardsBrown on January 17, 2011 at 1:08 AM

Nice portrait! Works well like this.
I'd suggest going for a square-ish crop and elininating much of the dead gray space at the top.
Sandy

Registered on November 24, 2003, 3937 Posts, 12909 Comments

Comment posted by Gary Gulash on January 17, 2011 at 1:38 AM

Hi Dennis. I like the interesting eye contact, little tilt to the head and the cute head shape/orange beak - sweetie. My thoughts on composition would be a bit more room in front of her face and at the bottom. I am surprised how good this big crop held up!!

Registered on January 28, 2005, 879 Posts, 12098 Comments

Comment posted by Mauro Pasquero on January 17, 2011 at 2:53 AM

How many Cardinals in these days ! This is awesome, Dennis

Incredible detail in spite the very big crop.
Mauro

Registered on January 21, 2010, 650 Posts, 2500 Comments

Comment posted by Michael Lotito on January 17, 2011 at 6:21 AM

I really like this. Wonderful crop and shot!

Registered on June 26, 2009, 181 Posts, 1558 Comments

Comment posted by Wayne Willison on January 17, 2011 at 7:32 AM

Looks like you did right, Dennis. Could use a bit more space on the right, but a real up close and personal image.

Registered on April 10, 2009, 292 Posts, 3967 Comments

Comment posted by Barbara Graham on January 17, 2011 at 7:57 AM

Beautiful light and detail, Dennis.

Registered on July 27, 2010, 1310 Posts, 5035 Comments

Comment posted by Ron Bielefeld on January 17, 2011 at 8:37 AM

Dennis. A nice look at this bird. I think a bit more room on the right and a bit less on the top would improve the comp, but that is just me. The large crop is evident when looking at the detail around the eye, but still a pleasant look at this bird, I especially like being able to scrutinize the beak area.

Registered on December 6, 2008, 360 Posts, 7132 Comments

Comment posted by Monica Siri on January 17, 2011 at 9:23 AM

Dennis,
I like this portrait a lot. The beak is super.

Registered on September 20, 2009, 132 Posts, 3764 Comments

Comment posted by Kurt Bowman on January 17, 2011 at 10:16 AM

Sweet color and detail on this one Dennis. I am fine with the crop you picked on this portrait. I saw a lot of others suggest more room on the right, but I am not sure how that would improve this? To me, it doesn't seem tight for a portrait shot.

Registered on June 19, 2008, 1005 Posts, 8028 Comments

Comment posted by Dan Moore on January 17, 2011 at 12:46 PM

Really sharp for the big crop. Love the PUNK look.

Dan

Registered on February 11, 2010, 143 Posts, 1248 Comments

Comment posted by Simon Litten on January 17, 2011 at 1:23 PM

I'm not a fan of heavily cropped images - I think they're more of a showcase for the quality of the lens/camera then the skill of the photographer. Love to see the original though as the color pallet of the background compliments the subject beautifully.

Simon

Registered on June 22, 2006, 24 Posts, 275 Comments

Comment posted by David Schoen on January 17, 2011 at 3:44 PM

When I saw your name attached to this Dennis, I thought we were having problems here in Western Washington but we PWNers do need to fly south too and dry out. Very nice portrait.

Registered on November 6, 2006, 1213 Posts, 4587 Comments

Comment posted by Matt Shellenberg on January 17, 2011 at 8:02 PM

Nice portrait Dennis. I like the full crown and nice lighting. Detail looks really good in the smaller post, but I am seeing a loss of detail in the larger post, probably due to such an extreme crop. I personally think the females are much more beautiful than the males with all of the subtle browns and reds.

Registered on February 6, 2008, 168 Posts, 3118 Comments

Comment posted by Angela McCain on January 17, 2011 at 11:31 PM

I like the tight portrait here. Very good detail in the small feathers around the base of the beak. I would crop some off the top.

Registered on April 19, 2009, 367 Posts, 3589 Comments

Comment posted by Ken Archer on January 18, 2011 at 3:57 AM

Way Cool

Ken Archer

Registered on October 28, 2004, 222 Posts, 6683 Comments

Comment posted by Mia McPherson on January 18, 2011 at 7:03 AM

Dennis,

I prefer the subtle beauty of the female Cardinals. I like the comp you used and how her crest is nearly centered vertically. The smaller version appeas to have more detail & sharpness than the larger version, probably loss of detail from the large crop.

Registered on June 25, 2007, 491 Posts, 12566 Comments

Comment posted by Howard Cheek on January 18, 2011 at 11:28 AM

The image/crop held up very well Dennis, great color & details here.
Like what I see in her eye in the LP. Think a simple square comp would be an option..Since your crop happy

Well done

Registered on July 24, 2008, 1201 Posts, 10758 Comments

Comment posted by Geoffrey Baker on January 19, 2011 at 1:39 PM

Well done, the eye is brilliant

Geoff.

Registered on August 20, 2010, 192 Posts, 980 Comments