Gallery: Feedback on the Golden Eagle ...

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My thanks to the five PF members that took the time to comment:
that's 6 reviews this week!!!

The Golden Eagle shot was not one of the ones I put in to the gallery
out of curiosity - to see if they spoke to others.  This shot is one I
took "for me".

There is no part of the original slide I'm unhappy with - it came out
how it was planned.  What the shot does not convey is the bitter cold:
the snow in the shadows.  The perspective was chosen to enable me to
use a smaller aperture yet still keep the background out of focus -
simple when the background is a long way away.  The separation
(selective focus) works for me.

A) The question raised by Kostas and Emily - contrast with the
background.  I've thought about this for a couple of days.  A
possibility would be to selectively darken the background
(imperceptibly) in PhotoShop.  However, I have my doubts.  The reason
for taking shots "on location" is to  get a photo that looks natural.
This is how the eagle looked:  it is how a wild eagle would look -
facing into the bracing wind.  Most of the time it just looked
straight ahead:  this shot caught the alert expression as it caught
sight of something behind me.

B) The question of space.  Emily quoted Galen Rowel, Kostas thinks too
little, Craig says the composition is fine.  It's not a debate:  the
space around the bird and that beautiful background in front of it
works for me.  A tighter crop on the bird would to me look - well,
like many photos of birds I have seen before  ;o)   I honestly don't
worry overly what others, however great, have said.  If you follow
rules too closely you get formulaic results ...

The highlight in the eye (Emily).  On the slide and even full scale
scan it's there.  As shown in the gallery the pupil is less than a
pixel.  The whole eye gets only half a dozen.  Its a restriction of
the medium I'm afraid.

C) Finally, when Marilyn commented: "No one would ever know this was a
captive bird if you hadn't told us".  Indeed.  If it was obvious I
would not have needed to say so.  It comes down to credibility and
honesty.  There are all too many charlatans about these days pasting
zoo animals on to landscapes and passing them off as other than what
they are.  For many that is not an issue.  However, in truth it is
deception:  if they sell the images as such it is fraud.  This
particular bird has appeared in a book of photos of "wild" eagles by a
famous Scottish photographer.  The owner of the bird is rare in that
he does not fit "jesses" to the legs, but just a single thin string
(left leg) which is easy to conceal behind a twig.

D) It's a captive bird, not a pet.  Given the chance it would tear the
flesh off your arm.

Bob T


Full comments listed below.

Craig -
This is a great mug shot! Composition couldn't be better, and I really
like the separation between the eagle and the background. Lighting,
exposure is excellent. Another great shot.

Marilyn
Golden Eagle:  I love the selective focus you used with this
photograph, Bob.  Every feather on the Golden Eagle is in focus, yet
the background is a soft, brown blur.  No one would ever know this was
a captive bird if you hadn't told us.  A very nice shot.

Gregory
Spectacular shot right down to the perfect background. Beautiful
birdie. I love that golden left eye. Spectacular.

Kostas
hmm, what if there was a lot more contrast with the background? how
about a
bit more FOV?

Emily
Grownup or baby?  I'm wishing there were more contrast, to accentuate
the powerfulness of this creature.  Somehow it looks so mild when the
mythology is of such dominance.  A hairlight along the breastline and
catchlight in the eye maybe?  And maybe get rid of all that space to
the right of it, since it's looking at us.  (Galen Rowell always said
that one should have space for a face to be facing towards.....)  That
would move the balance into a wedge shape - the rock ascending  to the
hind claws and the tailfeathers descending to the hind claws.


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