Another First

Fieldfare at drinking pool
This is another "first " chalk up in the "birds in pool" total. I built the new pool underneath the apple tree which I have been working for the past two weeks. Would have been nice to get some "splashy" stuff but the bird didn't stay. The water looks a bit brown but it was brown,as it hasn't really settled yet. You have to take what you can get.There's all winter left yet. Maybe not for me though.
D200 Sigma 100-500 mm
800 ISO 80 th @ f 6
Levels and neat image
Cheers
johnR

a nice natural image John, like it a lot, I might have cropped an inch or so off the left hand side, but that's personal taste. Like the bird looking out of the frame. Nice and sharp (as always with your work!)

cheers

Colin

Thanks Colin.
Looking at this again,
I agree about taking some off the left.
Cheers
JohnR

Agree with Colin - very nice shot. Taking some of the left would make for a more classical composition, but I quite like the amount of bank that's in the frame as it is.

Very nice pool shot. I agree about the cropping suggestion.

Thanks for looking.
Heres a different crop and crop and saturation cut.
Cheers
JohnR

yeah looks alot better now, nice light on the bird

A great setting John, and a very different fieldfare shot, from the norm!!

I like the first shot, but prefer the repost

Great shot!

Alan

Both compositions work well but my favourite of the two would be the first one.

Another fine pool shot John, prefer the repost.

Andy...

John, you're a master of these sorts of shot, you've got this style of doing it which always works, even though you're going against the grain and shooting down on the subject, when most of us would be eye level.
They all work so well.. Really shows off the character of these little birds, I think its quite easy to get trophy shots of small birds on perches with a long lens, but the majority end up being boring and sterile (mine do anyway :p) but these are always great to look at..

I think I prefer the repost, although the different for me is negligible..

Thanks again
Tim - thank you. This shot appears quite "low" as the pool is a long way away- which will make the angle look lower. I always say that the ultra low angle shots are not natural anyway because we dont see wildlife like that. ( Unless you're a weasel !) its just a modern photographers quest to do something different. There's not much left that hasn't been done now.
Cheers
JohnR

Was watching a couple of these briefly yesterday high up in a tree after 3 hours in a ditch (and no visitors ) Nicely taken again John, prefer the colours in the first with the crop in the second