Cooper's Nestling

Gallery: AvianPosted November 6, 201530 views2 comments

Based on what I have learned from previous submissions, I now realize many of my Cooper's Hawks images will not be submitted to NPN. That's not a bad thing. A new nesting season is only four months away as are new photo ops.

The image above is of a pre-flight nesling who clambered away from the nest. The image was taken with a Canon 60D and a 100-400 mm lens at 230mm,ISO 400, f/500,and f/7. I changed the side dimensions for a portrait appearance and a slight crop. The setting is typical of the environment urban Cooper's provide a photographer - shadows and bright lights. I considered a more intense crop to showcase the torso and head of the hawk but wasn't sure if doing so would have been acceptable.

Comments

2 comments

Comment posted by Patricia Brundage on November 7, 2015 at 5:57 AM

Sure you can crop this more if you so desire. A vertical crop would eliminate all the leaves on the right and put the focus on the hawk. Avian photography is a challenge but who can resist taking a photo of such a majestic bird. As long as you're pleased with the results and keep trying to get the perfect shot you've succeeded.

Registered on March 23, 2006, 1111 Posts, 6531 Comments

Comment posted by Dennis Plank on November 7, 2015 at 9:13 AM

It's neat to get a nestling, Larry. I'm glad to see they're consistent breeders in your area. The shadows on the face detract a bit from this image, but I like the clear view of the breast. Don't be afraid of cropping. It's much more critical in printing than in web presentation. If your original is nice and sharp when you view it at 100%, you can crop an amazing amount and still have something that looks good on the web.

As you're finding, documentary photography and "artistic" photography are vastly different.

devil

Registered on January 28, 2008, 1767 Posts, 23192 Comments