Butch, I agree with you, trying to photograph with lots of others makes me think of other ideas. Your photograph has a lot going for it. Great feathers, sky, wood foreground, grass horizon, detailed head shot. That said, the image leave me wondering what I am looking at. And I do like images that leave me wondering. I thought just a part of the image might look good. Looking forward to the other comments.   Posted: 07/03/2026 19:44:51

Great minds don't always think alike - you and I are polar opposites when it comes to partial wildlife images - I appreciate the comments   Posted: 07/03/2026 22:54:24

Roy - The site clipped my full response so I'll try again. I appreciate your thoughtful question and comment- "the image leaves me wondering what I am looking at. And I do like images that leave me wondering." I'll answer by saying the maker should never leave the viewer wondering what the subject is or what to look at, so you've given me the feedback I wanted - thank you.

There are thousands of photos of red tails in flight, hunting, feeding chicks, etc., and because of the situation I was in, i.e., a workshop with a static subject, I wanted to do something different, something out of the ordinary. So, I shot from the back side and from a low angle hoping to create visual interest. Obviously, you didn't find it as visually interesting as I had hoped and I appreciate your candor.

Having said that, these are the types of images I try to submit to DD groups, photos that are out-of-the-ordinary in some fashion. This one may not have succeeded but you can bet I'll keep trying :-) Thanks again for taking the time.
  Posted: 07/04/2026 13:08:03

You did a great job Butch! You can see all feathers of the bird. I like that its head is turned back. For me the uppermost part of the crop is very tight. I would personally leave more space above the head.   Posted: 07/08/2026 14:06:36

Thank you for your comments Ernoe - I see your point. I frequently use square crops when I'm looking for impact and because the head is so small in the frame I thought the image needed added impact, hence the square crop, but I didn't want the extra space on either side with the larger crop - artist's choice I suppose, but you observation has merit. Thanks again   Posted: 07/08/2026 15:08:27

What a unique capture of a bird that I see (and take) a lot of images of. Some of the best photographs are those of a common subject that has been shot uncommonly like this. I love the perspective.   Posted: 07/10/2026 12:57:54