Oak in Field
by Drake

Comment by snaffles:
Greetings from the Critique Club!

I like this shot and am glad to see I gave it a 6 in voting. Not so much due to the subject matter, more due to the centrally composed image. Nice exposure and light. Still, great to read the story of this tree, and I have to disagree a little with a comment on blowing out highlights and eliminated shadow detail...I am a stickler for bleachy highlights and none show up here. And HDR is supposed to bring out detail in shadowed areas, so I have no squabble with you doing that! The fact that the tree is backlit adds a surreal atmosphere to the whole shot, and I do appreciate that.

Susan

Wonder if the owl can read...
by Drake

Comment by digifotojo:
Clever 8

Wonder if the owl can read...
by Drake

Comment by jayzundel:
I like it. I'm not going in there. Truncated??

Oak in Field
by Drake

Comment by Kodak:
Interesting

Aging Wall on the Fallasburg Covered Bridge
by Drake

Comment by Kodak:
Interesting

Oak in Field
by Drake

Comment by posthumous:
the scritchy scratchy works well with hdr. has an unreal almost hostile feeling.

Inflight Snack
by Drake

Comment by sidpixel:
Hello from the Critique club

An interesting image that contributes well to the free challenge

Like you, I've never seen this myself, he must have been hungry! It also confirms how natural flight is to a bird that they can maintain their flight while concentrating on something else. In terms of frozen action this is an excellent example of it though personally I prefer to see more emphasis on motion, for example, with softness in the wingtips. I would also prefer the composition to be less central, this would crop well square with the bird in the upper right of the frame. A little less sharpening would benefit too there is some over-sharpening with halos on the feathers. I think the background could be lightened up just to make a little more appealing.

Thank you for your entry

Inflight Snack
by Drake

Comment by Abra:
Nice capture. Not your usual bird pose.

Aging Wall on the Fallasburg Covered Bridge
by Drake

Comment by whitewolf:
very pretty photograph

Inflight Snack
by Drake

Comment by Phocal:
Really great capture of an amazing bird, to bad you did not have a better sky for the backdrop (can't count the number of times I have wished that on photos I have taken). Would prefer a bit tighter crop that was not also so centered tho.