A portrait...

[chrisk]

...of a cockateil. love the lighting on this. given the owner was so in love with this bird and kept saying what a good friend it was, i wanted to make this much loved bird as human as possible by using traditional portrait style lighting and composition. the owner actually cried...how cool is that ? C&C welcome.

105VR
2 strobes used.

[RDW]

the owner actually cried...how cool is that ?

Keeping the customer happy counts, but did she pay?

You deserve a cracker for this one.

[Oz_Beachside]

very nice. the catchlights look quite natural and not that "studio" harsh shapes.

the blur to me looks PP'd, or is that just shallow from the 105mm?

[chrisk]

i think that blur effect comes from a real low SS so maybe a tad of camera shake. it's at 1/15s, really dragged the shutter on this one due to the location. otherwise unprocessed at f4.8, MFD.

RD this is one of a large number of shots from a paying commision for a bird sanctuary.

[surenj]

Nicely done! Is the blueness of the beak intentional?

[NJ]

i can see why the owner was so happy, this is amazing! it is obvious that much effort was put in, it really shows

[aim54x]

You have really succeeded in creating a portrait of the bird that makes it seem human.

[Alex]

Beautiful image and perfect dof.

Alex

[stubbsy]

Superb - sharp where it matters and creamy soft to draw the eye to the bird.

[karenkwan]

It's gorgeous, it's sharp just where it's supposed to be, the DOF is perfect and the photo really feels like a portrait of someone.

Good job