Any suggestions on improving?

I have hassled so much for this Snap but unfortunately when i put this up for review i received some negative comments too
Please lemme know what's lagging in this so next time i should be take care of those points.

Perhaps it's because some people are just not fond of pigeons


I am sure some more seasoned colleagues on here will be able to offer a more constructive critique, but to my eye, there isn't much wrong with this image. It's a close, correctly framed, sharp photograph of a pigeon in a nice scenery.


You didn't seem to have the greatest of lights on that particular day though, so the image looks slightly dull. You could boost the exposure slightly or reduce shadows so as to brighten the darker areas around the head and neck. Then perhaps boost vibrance or saturation.

Another thing is that people will often find tilted horizon lines unpleasing. I get that the photo was taken by the lake or sea, so curved lines are inevitable, but you could crop tighter to reduce the amount of space in the top left corner.

Otherwise, I think you're on the right track.

I hope this helps.

Heya,

Wow you got up close for that at 55mm! That's some serious elbow crawling!

If you wanted to present it, here's some quick suggestions which maybe have already been given:

1. Straight horizons or crop that part out. If you crop it out, it's not there and not distracting. If you rotate it, the bird will present differently. Up to you!
2. Exposure is down, it's a bit under-exposed. It's hard sometimes to expose a dark subject on a light environment; and vise verse. Increasing exposure will help with this one.
3. You were already low, so that's great. The lower your camera is so that the ground is not behind your subject, the better. This helps with isolation; and you've already done most of this, so that's good.

Very best,

Just to add to what's already been said - you had your ISO set at 100, and a shutter speed of 1/200. You could safely go up to say 400 on the former without inviting too much noise. This would allow for a higher shutter speed. You've done well with sharpness here, but then pigeons tend to stay still for long enough to use low shutter speed. With most of the birds though, unless you go to 1/1000 at the very least, you will be risking losing tones of good opportunities.

Hello OP. Like you, I am very new to bird photography and find it most challenging. I have been studying the numerous bird portraits that get posted on POTN, on daily basis, and have been slowly learning what makes a good shot. I agree with what everyone said above. The only thing I can add is that I have noticed having the right light angle on a bird's eyes as well as having the eye in sharp focus makes a big difference, followed by capturing feather detail. Both these require having good light, and capturing the shot with a good perspective, which is often not easy. Overcast days or side lighting usually kills it for me.
BTW, welcome to POTN.

You did well to get such a close shot with that lens. I agree with all the comments above, but the main ones with this shot are, to my mind, the slanting horizon (yes, crop it out) and the exposure, which is fine for the sand but not for the bird. Lightening the shadows a bit in post-processing would reveal more detail in the bird's head and neck and improve the shot no end.

You've received plenty of great advice already. Here are my thoughts:

Overcast days are challenging but there are times when some cloud cover is helpful. Photographing contrasting marked subjects, like Stilts or Oystercatchers as examples, is an easier exposure when the light is less harsh. The downside is that the overall image will be lacking in contrast.

I like that you got a very low angle, getting down to their level places the viewer in their world. It also offers background opportunities that will often be very complimentary to the overall image. When composing your shots pay close attention to the background, sometimes moving just inches left, right or up/down can greatly improve a shot. As an example, a slightly lower angle on your photo would have moved the shoreline that's crossing behind the bird's head and beak to more behind its neck. This would have positioned the bird's head in the open space of the water. I'm not saying what you have is wrong, I'm just using that as an example of how a small movement can change what's occurring in the image. There are times when being low can introduce a poor background, in that case I would suggest rising up a bit to eliminate any negatives.

I understand why you angled the frame to get the bird more level, obviously it was standing on a steep incline. By cropping and removing the horizon from the image you can downplay your angled composition.

I'm attaching my edit, it's easier to show you than try to describe the direction I'm suggesting. I adjusted the exposure, you underexposed a bit. I also bumped the saturation and contrast a little.

I hope this helps in some way. You did really well at 55mm, you obviously approached with care and patience. Well done.

Agree about everything that has been said. I've been doing more bird photography just lately and believe me it's not easy to get good shots!

If it was me I try and get rid of the twig etc. as well as it's a little distracting.