Harry M. Stuart  


American Eagle by Harry M. Stuart

December 2019 - American Eagle

December 2019 - Harry M. Stuart

Original

About the Image(s)

My American Eagle shot was not in the wild but, because it has a broken wing, out of a cage in Alaska. Taken back in 2003, this image has gone through several iterations of edits starting with the original where I found it posing on an artificial grass covered perch. From what I can remember, the sequence of editing started with cropping, cloning of the background to remove nail holes, replacing the perch with a tree limb, and finally utilizing a new (to me) piece of software called Luminar 4 to replace the background with sky. Luminar 4 is a plug-in to Photoshop but can be used standalone (as I do because I use Corel Paintshop Pro)and comes with a feature pleasing to me - content-aware sky replacement. That means that I did not have to mask the bird - the software to care of it perfectly with a single keystroke.

Minolta Dimage 7i, ISO 200, 1/45 sec, f3.5, handheld.


This round’s discussion is now closed!
11 comments posted




Shirley Pohlman   Shirley Pohlman
What a wonderful editing job! You did a lot of work to make this eagle look proud to represent the USA. I feel you brought out the detail of the feathers so well, nice replacement of the perch to a tree limb. And I do need to look into Luminar after seeing your beautiful sky replacement. Awesome job.   Posted: 12/09/2019 16:44:59



 
This a neat edit. My only negative comment the sky seems to bleed into the head of the eagle, making it look misshapen. I'm impressed with how the perch went from the artificial grass to the branch and how the sky looks.   Posted: 12/09/2019 18:55:58
 
Thanks, Brenda. I applied some 'extra pixels' to modify the head although not the same color scheme as the original.   Posted: 12/14/2019 05:17:37
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Piers Blackett   Piers Blackett
Spectacular editing. It now looks like a wizened eagle in the wild....and after suffering some hardship! I have also just got Luminar 4 and find the AI sky replacement exciting for artistic presentation. I also found that in some cases it merges sky into the bird's fathers but in your case it has given the eagle's head-feathers a ruffled appearance adding to character. Also the sky below the perch has not been replaced, so it might benefit from cloning. I find Slylum's sky choices don't blend well, but they give the option to use your own, so generally you might prefer using your own sky images.   Posted: 12/10/2019 18:54:21
 
Thanks, Piers. I attended a full day training session yesterday for Luminar 4 held at one of the camera clubs I am a member of. The presenter laid out the features well but no solution to some of the issues I have encountered. The good news is that the development team is on the ball and we can expect further features - and fixes to issues when notified.   Posted: 12/14/2019 05:24:02



 
Wonderful image and edits! I need to spend more time learning editing techniques. I would fix the head/sky area. I might not have noticed it, but after reading comments and then seeing it I kept going back to it. That's the only critique I have. Great shot!   Posted: 12/13/2019 11:02:39
 
Got it - thanks. I was so amazed at the sky replacement that I failed to notice the head - or, I thought I could get away with it. Choose one.   Posted: 12/14/2019 05:26:28



Piers Blackett   Piers Blackett
I'm finding that it finds feathers close to cloud texture even within the bird's body and wings, but when it works its very nice. But I doubt if it will ever be allowed for Nature in PSA or club competition though.   Posted: 12/14/2019 17:55:57
 
It would not be eligible anyway because of the changes made to background, perch, etc. for Nature in PSA. My club does not have that category so it's fine for them.   Posted: 12/15/2019 10:19:52



 
I like wild life.Your picture is nice,but allow me to make more space in front of the eagle.   Posted: 12/17/2019 18:37:02
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Good point. Thanks, Hung.   Posted: 12/17/2019 18:45:49