Susan Cifaldi  

The Bird with the Ruby Red Slippers by Susan Cifaldi

September 2023 - The Bird with the Ruby Red Slippers

September 2023 - Susan Cifaldi

Original

About the Image(s)

Specs: D500/300mm PF prime @1f/4, ISO 400. Tight crop!

Costa Rica is wet and wonderful as far as birds are concerned. Everywhere we went there were so many colorful birds who didn't seem to mind the rain. This red-legged honey creeper was happy to pose but refused to entertain me by flying or performing any other bird-type tricks. It wears remnants of a recent rainfall. Even though the feet are mostly hidden behind the perch, there is no mistaking this bird for anything other than a red-legged honey creeper. The rain soon returned, forcing me to retreat with my camera to a drier place inside the restaurant. The combination of the D500 and the 300 (that's 300mm, not 3000!) PF prime lens worked really well, even for a beginner like me! I was able to keep the ISO kind of normal with a lot less grain than I expected. I'm not sure what caused the glary brightness of the top surface of the branch -- reflections from the rain? In any event, I was happy to capture this image of a really beautiful bird in all its finery, which is sharp enough and contrasts cleanly against the green background. I didn't have to do much in postprocessing other than a tight crop (thank you, Nikon!!), a little brightening, and then deepening the color of the head feathers just a bit.

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

Larry Treadwell   Larry Treadwell
That is really a pretty bird. The white glary brightness is light reflecting off the water that is on the top of the branch. Depending on the angle the light is coming from a po0arizer can help to solve this problem. It is also the reason for the appearance on the top of the bird's head. The tight crop is responsible for the lack of sharness.

If you are going to continue going to wet regions to shoot birds then I strongly suggest you check out the link below. The company makes camera raincoats that are unbelievable as far as keeping your gear dry. I use them on .the beach to keep salt spray off the camera and when shooting in snow. I've shot professional sports games in a deluge with puddles of water on the ground and the camera remains safe and dry. Watch the video

https://www.lenscoat.com/lenscoat%ef%bf%bd-raincoat-p-1506.html   Posted: 09/10/2023 13:01:43
Michael Weatherford   Michael Weatherford
Hey Susan. That's a beautiful subject. Love those red feet. I like the pose and background. The image has great balance with the bird in a good position and extra room on the right side. I might have tried removing the brown stick in the background, but no big deal. I agree focus is soft overall, but the eye is sharp. The top of the bird's head is maybe a little too bright. Thanks.   Posted: 09/10/2023 19:10:36
Cindy Marple   Cindy Marple
Definitely a favorite photo subject in that region, they are so colorful. Too bad they don't end up in Kansas when they click those ruby red slippers...
I like the coy pose of the bird and the soft green background. My taste tends to a looser composition with more space around the subject, especially when that space isn't full of distractions. I'd do something along this line in a vertical format to accentuate the bird's pose.   Posted: 09/12/2023 14:48:48
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Richard Matheny   Richard Matheny
Susan what a beautiful bird. Love the Blue=red bird and the soft, green and clean background. Yep, it rains there a lot as I remember. You have a beautiful image but there are a couple of easy fixes it you wanted to. As I said I love the Blue Creeper, but I am not fond of that stick stabbing it on its left side, nor do I know what that is hanging from the branch on the right side of the bird. I find that a little distracting. I would remove them in PS. Really easy with the new remove tool. I took the liberty to make the changes I spoke of and tried some cloning on the branch to get rid of the white strip on the top of the limb. You bird and background are really good. Great Bokeh and the bird is sharp. I don't find the top of the bird's head to be distracting at all, it looks natural to me.   Posted: 09/13/2023 16:23:01
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Susan Cifaldi   Susan Cifaldi
I was wpmdering about the glary top of the branch and didn't realize the glary top-of-the-head were related, but it does make sense. I had no idea it could be eliminated with a PS trick so thanks for showing me that. I'd like to try to avoid it in-camera, but that seems to be a skill that's beyond me. PS I didn't even notice the offending stick until you erased it, Richard! It does improve the image with it gone. Another PS I guess now I can fix that photo I have with an eagle being strangled by a stick as it posed in a tree for me. . .Thanks for everyone's comments!!   Posted: 09/16/2023 23:30:43
Bud Ralston   Bud Ralston
Susan - how lucky you got a trip to Costa Rica! I have tried to get there for years but haven't made it so far. That is a wonderful bird I haven't seen before. You got a really nice pose. It looks like he was as curious about you as you were about him. The D500 with the 300 f/4 PF is great for birds. I have them both, and even those I switched to Z gear, I kept those for the lightness and quality. You can't go wrong with them. I like what Richard has done to clean up the image. Now, you can go back through your thousands of Costa Rica images and bring out some winners.   Posted: 09/24/2023 12:07:53
Susan Cifaldi   Susan Cifaldi
Thanks, Bud. I was indeed very fortunate! The only problem is, I want to go back!!

Learning about postprocessing. Not very good at it right now, but when I see how others have tweaked my photos, it inspires me to learn more.

Before I go through my CR images, I want to fix the photo I have of an eagle who looks like he is being strangled with a branch :-) If I succeed, maybe I'll post that one. (didn't notice the branch until I got home and put the photo on the big screen, duh).   Posted: 09/24/2023 15:44:49