Cirl Bunting

5od+400mmf5.6
Exposure Time = 1/6400"
F Number = F7.1
Exposure Program = Aperture priority
ISO Speed Ratings = 400
Shutter Speed Value = 12.63 TV
Aperture Value = 5.63 AV
Exposure Bias Value = -0.67EV
Metering Mode = Spot

Taken in Brittany a couple of weeks ago
C & C welcome

Not bad the bird is a bit dark, lots of cloning marks showing ?.

Phil.

A lovely image Kim, but do agree with Phil re: the cloning marks, especially around the beak.

A bird I would love to have in my p/f though.

Fran

Hi - thanks for the comments - but there is no cloning at all round the beak - I attach the original - totally untouched apart from a crop

I agree with the above, and also think that you could give the bird a bit of a lift by changing the levels a little, and also upping the contrast.

David

Hi Kim, there are quite a few clone marks including those mentioned around the beak and indeed a distinct line running at the midpoint on the RHS where you have cloned out or added sky to the otherwise white OOF area from the original. I can understand trying to obtain something from the original as it's a good bird to have in the library but with a little more work I think you might get there..

I very quickly grabbed the original you posted above and had a quick play using the clone tool, levels. S&H and sharpening.. This machine is uncalibrated office computer so not the best but I think a little improvement..

Hope you don't mind and I can remove it if you feel otherwise.

Kind regards,

Brett

Hi Kim,

The first one is very strange, not sure where the funny marks have come from and there is a horizontal line on the right. Nice singing pose and perch though, worth having another crack at the original.

Cheers,

Lewis.


Edit: Bretts effort looks spot on!

Hi Brett - Many thanks - no of course I do not mind - there is certainly an improvement! I have no idea where the marks round the bill came from - but as you can see from the original - there is nothing to clone!! It could have been the sharpening technique I used instead of the normal way - that is using layers and eraser!!
I appreciate the comments, criticisms and advice - of course that's what it's all aboujt.

Have had another go at the edit!! I think I have got rid of the nasty mark round the bill

I've never seen one of these before and to be totally truthful wouldn't know one if I did!

My C&C would be to look at your metering here. In the untouched original I would say that the subject is underexposed. Now I don't know how you spot metered here, or more precisely where you spot metered, but I'd hazard a guess that the background sky has heavily influenced the result. In these situations I have 3 methods that I use.
1. Incident reading with a hand held meter. This measures the light falling on the scene regardless of the subject tones.
2. Sunny 16 rule - when set f/16 your shutter speed is equal to your ISO.
3. Find a mid tone on the landscape and spot meter from that.

Hope that helps.

Regards

JohnS

Thank you John.

Kim

What a nice subject and the last version looks fine to me. I must say that its really great getting a thread on a subject that invokes opinions and explanations. So many variable factors exist that may well have an influence on the presented subject. Not by anymeans least being the monitor the subject is viewed on.

Thanks for sharing and the chance to learn more.

Irrespective of the above, my first thought was that you had cropped the virtual tail and that a vertical would have worked better, in your initial post.

Looking at the first repost, I see that you do have room to experiment with the cropping.

All in all, a good capture taken at a very opportune moment, well seen, and yes taken.

John - you missed a 4th option... chimp the exposure on the back of the camera and adjust accordingly.

Kim - the odd marks in the 1st posted image could be extreme sharpening halos... but they are rather unusual. What method of sharpening did you use?

Again, many thanks for the suggestions, John, they are most helpful. Nick, I commented earlier that I did use a different method of sharpening in that I used layers and eraser and probable was not careful enough!! Yes I agree Ray I should have been more careful with the tail!!! I hadn't noticed