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Hi all - took this shot down at Hinze Dam (the Gold Coast) just after dusk - this egret was sitting on the other side of the dam, obviously looking at something in the water. Propped up the tripod on the bank, and set for 4 second exposure, hoping like buggery that the bird wouldn't move toooo much. Didn't turn out perfectly, but I still kind of liked the effect.
Rel

Not bad at all! I like how reflection mixed with silky water as result of long exposure

I'm liking this, and it looks pretty sharp for 4sec.

What I would like to see though is a bit cropped off the bottom.
A bit more canvas to the right (not much), if you have it.
Plus a bit more canvas to the left, if you have it.

Would rather see this as a landscape I think, however if you give the bird a bit more room to the right and trim a bit off the bottom it would be even better than it already is!

I like this too,

Was just about to say that I thought it needed to be cropped a tad more on the bottom and got down to kippers post.

I echo what he said, although I dont mind it in portrait mode.

Steve

Very impressive.

And ignore what the others have said about the cropping: they're wrong (IMHO).

But I think that it might benefit from a very lightly different crop.

I would maybe add a bit more at the top, maybe reduce a tad at the bottom, but definitely add something to the left, effectively giving us more of a look at what the egret is watching as well.

As I said though, this is already very impressive.

Thanks all so much for your comments - much nicer comments than I expected to be honest !! I went back and played a bit more with the original, and tried a 6x4 crop. I'm not sure I like it, but it is different, and gives more a wholistic view to the shot.....

I'm supposed to be working ( ), so better get back to it.

Thank you all so much again - I have learnt so much since joining this forum (thanks Manta)

Much better.

Just add a touch more at the bottom so that the the space is equal above the egrets head is equal to what is in the reflection.

Personally I thought the bird didn't have enough space around it on the right.

Oh yes!

Excellent - it’s almost as if the egret was posing on purpose

wow thats much better.

I wasnt so sure about a landscape crop, but now I am!!

I did want the bottom cropped on the original to balance it up.

Steve

forgot to mention that I also believe that the space above the egrets head should be equal to the space below the reflection.

looks the business though

Really like the landscape orientation and a great shot. Shows how still they can stand when they are hunting

Thats a keeper! Personaly I prefer the first one you posted (portrait)

the audience is split 50/50 over portrait and landscape.
at this rate we may have to duke it out in birdys backyard to get a clear winner.

seriously though, the individuality of peoples tastes comes thru, showing why there is such an interest in photography

Steve

I'm pleased you're finding the forum as informative, friendly and addictive as the rest of us Narelle and I knew it wouldn't be long before you built your confidence and learned to see the talent in your shots that we all see.

This is a lovely, wistful capture and really gives the impression of serenity and isolation. It could've been taken anywhere and the tricky lighting situation was handled with your trademark ease. Your patience and eye for detail really pays off.

I like the second version as it gives the viewer more to think about and adds so much more to the story. Kipper had the vision in his mind and now you've put it on our screens. Nice collaboration.

Edit: Sorry - wrong person originally credited with the idea of the landscape version. Apologies to those concerned.

Very nice, one vote here for the landscape, plus can I get some of what you used to get the egret to stand still for 4 seconds?

GLUE!!!

I like the landscape crop the best also. GREAT shot!!
Is it still sharp at a decent size or is it only sharp at web-view sizes?

Well done

Paul

Manta, actually I had the landscape with more space, and room to the left, vision first

I think Gary wanted it kept Portrait with more space for the bird to look into.

Another vote for the landscape. Nice shot.

It's a very nice shot. I liked the concept of the vertical, but as Darryl's pointed out I think it benefits from "space for the bird to look into". The rule of thumb I sometimes use would mean in this case including enough space for the egret's gaze to meet the water's surface. This would mean including a lot of vertical space to keep the composition balanced.
The horizontal works well too.

Be aware however that the image is tilted to the left slightly. Try tilting it 1.75 degrees to the right (so that the bird's reflection is below it rather than off to the right slightly) then re-crop and compare that to the original. Different people react to this in different ways, but my feeling is that it feels more balanced and serene when the surface of the water is horizontal.

kipper wrote:I think Gary wanted it kept Portrait with more space for the bird to look into.

I did, but this works far better than I expected it would.

Very very good, looks great.

Dave, If the reflection was sharp, I'd tell them to draw the measure tool from eye to eye

G'day,
The landscape orientation has transformed the image, now it gives the viewer an idea of where the Egret's attention is, rather than somewhere out of frame...

Great shot and four seconds

kipper wrote:Manta, actually I had the landscape with more space, and room to the left, vision first

I think Gary wanted it kept Portrait with more space for the bird to look into.

Mea culpa! Sorry Darryl. Original post has been edited.
(Slap on hand for reading forum posts while juggling several other tasks at work....)

kipper wrote:Dave, If the reflection was sharp, I'd tell them to draw the measure tool from eye to eye

Even for blurred reflections this is still the technique I would use (the edge of the reflection is a good feature to measure from).

Now you mention it Dave, the edge of the breast is still fairly defined so you can use that as a reference to see how much rotation is required.

Bingo!

I love the image and IMHO both formats have merit. However I personally prefer the landscape crop. Great effort and an interesting effect with the softened reflection.

marco

I like both variations. I think for portrait it could of been done just a tad better, with a bit of room to the right of the bird (not much) and just a little to the left of the folliage (what sort of vegetation is it again?). Plus a bit of canvas above the bird. I prefer symmetry in reflection shots so there is equal above and below the horizon.

Thank you all so very much for your comments, and for taking the time to even look at my photo - let alone comment on it!!!

Glue probably would help somewhat , but I was just lucky that it was getting late, dark, and the egret obliged by being still for long enough You should see the shots I have where the bird didn't stay still long enough LOL.

I just printed out the photo to see how sharp it is, and it is actually pretty sharp (I amazed myself). There is a fair bit of grain, due to the low light, but other than that, the eye of the bird is sharp, and you can even see the pupil.

The plant in the dam is Myriophyllum aquaticum, an introduced aquatic weed which has formed a fairly dense mat around the edge of Hinze dam. It is so thick that a swamp hen has started to construct a nest in the middle of it !

I've bored you all enough - but again thank you from the bottom of my heart. You've no idea how you've made my day

Rel