Birds

The mystical, magical, spiritual owl! Part of the popularity of owls is that they are laden with archetypal symbolism. Every culture has its own ideas of what the owl stands for, but certainly some common themes are wisdom, spirituality, mystery and the supernatural. In this particular image the photographer captured a lot of these! There is an other-worldliness and pleasant eeriness about this owl. The artist's technique of blur, whether intentional or unintentional resulted in an ethereal rendition of this iconic creature. That's what I love about blurs. This is a great example of how "perfect" technical technique is not the end-all and be-all of art in photography. If an image can stop you in your tracks... something has been accomplished. The one thing that could possibly improve this image would be to have some sharpness in the eyes, but that is debatable.

There are some things that I really like about this image. The contrast between the colours of the bird and the stark, winter background are striking. That is what really drew me in. I like the icy-cold feel that is relayed to the viewer. The droplets of water shaking off also add a surprising amount of interest to the image. Birds in chaotic backdrops such as this rarely work, because the noisiness becomes a distraction. Here, however, since the twigs are all white, it works amazingly well and even adds interest. I just wanted to see the bird in a pose that would allow me to connect more with it. I am a fan of being able to make eye contact and having the subject faced more toward the viewer. I also like to remove things such as the twig that is over the bird's tail feathers. If the photographer has the opportunity to find these birds in this environment again, I would encourage working on it more. There is a beautiful image to be made with this!

I want to congratulate the photographer on seeing this as a potentially wonderful image. And it is wonderful in many ways, but this is also a very challenging composition to tackle. I have often looked at this sort of scene and thought to myself: "This is so great there has to be a stunning pic here!" And then I wrestle with it. What does seem to work at times is to get down low at eye-level with the birds and the scene if possible. This seems to be taken from above looking down at the birds. It almost always makes for a much more intimate scene if we get down low and then make our composition. It may be that in this case it was not possible, but if it were, perhaps isolating the two front males in more of a close-up would have worked very well. These are tough shooting conditions, but it's always delightful to see a bunch of Wood Ducks together. Thank you for sharing!

I like this image of the two birds grooming in the sun. Shooting into the sun can be very tricky, but can produce wonderful creative effects when done well. The shooting conditions are doubly tricky here since the subject is black and the background is largely light in colour. One must make a choice: expose for the lights or the dark. It appears that the photographer went a bit for the middle ground here. I wonder what would have happened if the birds were made more into silhouettes and the background bokeh was emphasised more? Or at the opposite end if the photographer exposed for the black to gain more detail in the bird and maybe go for a high-key rendition. Shooting into the sun is well worth playing with. I commend the photographer for not being afraid to do so! I also love the pose and sweetness of the composition.

There are elements of this image that I enjoy very much. The photographer has achieved a rather intimate glimpse into the life and home of these two gulls. It has a rather gritty, grunge look that is very interesting and fun. In addition, there is some interaction between the two birds that deepens the storyline a bit. When I first saw this my first take was that this would be a great candidate for some texture overlay to emphasise that marvelous grunge and grit feel. Could take on a whole new artsy look and might be worth playing with! A cool pic as it is too.

This is really a lovely image in many ways. The yellow bird on soft yellow background is truly exquisite. The detail and sharpness is spot-on. The little guy's head is turned toward the viewer just enough to be engaging and there is a great catch light in the eye. What I feel would bring this image up a level higher would be some cloning. In a close-up shot such as this I find the poop on the perch a bit distracting. I would clone this out in Photoshop or Lightroom, which can be done very easily. Some folks are opposed to this, but art is always very subjective. Otherwise, this is a stunning image. Well done!

Whenever an image "cries" out for a caption you know that it has succeeded in telling a story to the viewer. And isn't that what so much of photography is about - storytelling? These Barn Swallows are telling a story of boundaries and territory in my view - "Get out of my space!". The photographer froze the action expertly. The air-borne one is literally hanging and hovering in space. The background is blurred out perfectly with the artistic use of depth of field and sets the stage beautifully. This minimalistic backdrop demands the viewer's focus solely on the action and is a pretty contrast to the colour of the swallows. This is a delightfully whimsical image.

Endangered and captive indeed. I can't help, but put this image into the Top 10. It makes such a strong statement on so many levels. When photography communicates with a single image a powerful tool has been harnessed. I am not opposed to zoos, parks and the like. I pretty much learned how to photograph birds in an aquarium setting and I raised my children on a healthy diet of zoo visitations. But, like many, I have conflicted feelings about captive birds and animals in general. To see a creature locked-up like this is a tough image to process emotionally. Right there the artist has succeeded. Whatever our convictions are about the earth's issues of wildlife endangerment and captive creatures, it is important to have the conversation and not to ignore the issue. Photography has become a critical tool for conversations about conservation. The image is technically done well with sharpness and detail. The composition is compelling. Thank you for sharing this story.

"Where is everyone and what have they done to my duck pond?" This is another image that begs a caption! It does very well in giving material to the viewer so that we might create a story with our own imagination. To me the scene speaks to the challenge wildlife and humans face in sharing this earth and natural resources. And it does it with a sense of humor which I love. Great technical skill was utilised in creating this photograph. The choice of the wide angle makes the bird larger than life which adds to the humour. Getting down on the bird's level very close makes one feel like we are there with him. And going an extra mile with the flash made all the difference. The bird is sharp down to the nails and the look on his face is priceless. Brilliant. It puts a smile on my face every time I see it.

The theme in this striking Ostrich image is a universal one that is always compelling. There is a sense of intimacy that I feel as the viewer and it immediately draws me in. It evokes emotions of tenderness and a sense of awe and wonder. The feeling of tenderness comes from the parent/child theme, but the sense of awe and wonder is stimulated by the amazing perspective that the photographer chose. One can't help but notice the size deferential and be amazed at it! In addition to the size comparison we also get to soak in multiple textures with the softness of the chick and the scaly, prehistoric-like roughness of the parent's skin and nails. The photographer did a brilliant job in capturing these marvelous details for us to enjoy. This is a keeper.

Who can resist jumping Gentoo Penguins? How delightful. These guys just really appear to be having a blast. For many of us this type of shot takes us away to an exotic land full of exotic creatures! I never underestimate how tough it is to capture a great action shot of wildlife. It takes patience, perseverance and technical know-how. The fast shutter speed of 1/2500 allowed the photographer to freeze not only the action but the water as well, which makes it appear like ice. One suggestion would be to use an aperture of f9 to 13 or so to make sure that both of the birds are tac- sharp. Of course sometimes it is an artistic choice to make one less sharp than the other, but in this case my sense is that perhaps having both spot-on would have been ideal. It looks like the time of day could have handled the higher f-stop. Wonderful, whimsical image that makes me want to be there!

This Marsh Warbler has something to sing about! He is hanging out (literally) in a gorgeous environment. The photographer skillfully used a wide open aperture to create a soft and dreamy backdrop for this lovely singer. The reeds lend an Asian flavor to the image which gives it a serene and calming feel. The subject is quite centred which according to the rule of thirds is a no-no for composition. Thus, this is a perfect example of knowing the rules, but also knowing when to break them. The centering works brilliantly here and even adds to the calming effect. Lastly, all the techy stuff like colour balance, sharpness and detail in the feathers are spot-on. In sum, this is a delicate image with an ethereal feel. I'd hang this on my wall.

What a beauty! I love this kestrel image. I see a lot of bird images every day in our community on Google Plus and raptors are a popular species to photograph. But getting a stellar image of a raptor such as this kestrel in such a lovely setting is a rarity. This is a perfect example of a photograph of a bird that has been taken to the next level due to the artistic nature of the background. Both the subtle colours and the depth of field lend a sense of softness that balances out the fierceness of this bird. And the bird is spot-on sharp. The rugged snag perch covered in delicate, green lichen (?) contrasted with the yellow talons is the cherry on this cake. Couldn't be more perfect.