The Early Birds Get the....

Image Description

The swallows were back yesterday but still in relatively small numbers. Today the main flock seems to have arrived. This was taken yesterday when we had a very frosty morning. These two birds seem to have decided on a box right away.

Type of Critique Requested

  • Aesthetic: Feedback on the overall visual appeal of the image, including its color, lighting, cropping, and composition.

  • Conceptual: Feedback on the message and story conveyed by the image.

  • Technical: Feedback on the technical aspects of the image, such as exposure, color, focus and reproduction of colors and details, post-processing, and print quality.

Specific Feedback and Self-Critique

I think the frost on the box roof and the puffed up male convey the idea that it’s pretty early in the year and the box tells the story that they’re house hunting, particularly with the female sticking her head out.

I’m not sure about the composition. I thought a vertical would work better, but it was taken as a horizontal and I have lots of canvas on both sides to play with.

Technical Details

Sony A1, FE 200-600 + 1.4 TC @ 806 mm, handheld, f/9, 1/1000, iso 2500, manual exposure. Processed in LR & PS CC. Cropped from a horizontal to a 4092x4902 vertical. Taken at 8:21 AM yesterday.

Oh what a treat to have them so close. The frost is a nice touch as is his poofiness. I had a bit of a tinker with it and hope you like what I’ve done. I think it just brightens focus areas, removes distractions and gives it a bit of sparkle -

Not all the layers are at full strength either. Cropped very slightly, too. I can see the conundrum there. Tried square and that didn’t work either. What a couple of cuties. I hope you’ve got little ones soon!

Thanks, Kris. That does add a bit of pop to the image.

Glad you like it. If you had more room on the left, I’d say show the corner of the roof and lose some of the blank side and post. Next time if they pose nicely.

I have the canvas on the left. I’ll take a stab a it that way.

1 Like

So cool, Dennis. This year will be my first attempt at Swallows in Spring. There’s an Oregon wildlife refuge near me that puts their boxes out just about this time. Going to check it out tomorrow.

I like that you have both birds on their new home.

Cheers,
David

A wonderful opportunity! I like @Kris_Smith’s edits. I’ll watch this space!

Last year a pair nested here in a box that Bluebirds had just finished with.

Nice to get the pair and they’re both looking towards the viewer. The frost helps tell the story this is early in the year. I wonder how this would look with a bit more room on the left, with the corner of the roof showing?