out of these 15 images..how many did you have to shoot to get them!
im really curious, i tried my luck at a swarm of birds over a pond in yellowstone yesterday and gave up lol! no thanks ill stick to big game animals and birds perched on trees for the time being, its stinking hard!
Karl Witt wrote:
Morning Andy! You know I would like to comment on each one for you buddy but I think they would boot me from the forum for taking up too much space
So, in staying with first impressions, the ones that jump out at me are: #1 for the fine comp, color and BG separtion. #5 for the nice soothing BG and the unique pose. #8 for the feel of anticipation. #10 for the formation color and sharpness. #12 for the stacked formation and wing tip to wing tip framing . #14 for the cool shot that it is!
Other comments, #2 is very cool and #7 'golden light' I might be inclined to warm up the image a bit, that is if permissible by your standards
Smokin' good series buddy, that is a culmination of many frames I am sure but the ones you picked are wonderful!
Hi Karl, my friend.
You're one of only a handful of artists/photographers on the N&W board that can rant on for pages of detailed critiques that I can trust. I agree with all your fine analysis. Of course, one can say I agreed because it's all positive. ~ Well, truth is, not because it's positive, but because it MAKES SENSE. And I do appreciate your interpretation of the images, in your own artistic way.
This is the kind of analysis that I keep encouraging more people to start doing and I hope they will do so. I'm all open for positive and/or negative critiques. The key point is WHY you like it or dislike it. It's only thru open-mindedness that we can learn from our own mistakes and from others' experience/interpretation.
David Israel wrote:
Great series, Andy. Afterall, who doesn't just love the action sequences. I especially love the cropped close ups. If you aren't doing any PP on these images then kudos to you for some great exposure work. Very nicely done.
Dave
Thanks a bunch, Dave.
When I was shooting RAW before, I used Photoshop's built-in RAW converter and did most of the exposure adjustments in that converter. Now I've eliminated that process altogether by shooting in JPEG. I find that I don't lose any image quality while gaining time (CF card writing and RAW conversion), I can't tell if the maximum frame rate changes much. I still use PP now, only for some slight leveling (if required), and cropping (sometimes). The exposure control is probably from my training in Photography school back in the early-80's, when there were no Digital cameras, and we had to be able to calculate the exact exposure at any given time of day, weather condition, etc. using our heads, without the need of a luxmeter. I think that helped.
probably some of the best tern shots I've ever seen.
Well done.
Lil
Lil,
I sincerely thank you. Not sure if I want to receive that praise, you never know how many people will be pretty upset about that statement, especially just after they spent $$,$$$ on a new lens or camera. (Evidently, they deliberately refuse to comment on my post.)
I'm so glad you approved. Just wanted to share my appreciation for wildlife photography with the group.
Hi Andy, how are you
Too many to comment on individually but my overall impression is dynamic action, competition (between the birds), life and death drama and all in all a fantastic set.
I like the bg on the first one and it makes the bird stand out well and gives it a warm feeling in contrast to # 4 which appears grey and cool.
My favourite of the set is # 9 for the head on catch and the way the wings seem to be enfolding the fish but I find it just a bit dark.
I note your mimimal approach to pp and I do the same but I do think that a little can do a lot to enhance an image.
Martin
What I really like is the diversity of the shots you have here and the amount of great behaviour you have captured. 5, 8, 9, 10 and 14 are my favourites but they are all beautiful.
I showed these shots to my wife, she's not a photographer and doesn't get impressed just because a shot is technically difficult, but she was seriously impressed with these.
By the way, the images on your website home page photo show are a sensation.
Wonderful job with these, Andy. You need a lot of skill to get pics like that and you definitely got it. I don't see Exif embedded, but you managed to freeze some great fast action poses, all with a very pleasing light and colors. As has already been said one of the best Tern series posted. 1, 3, 7 and 12 are my favorites.
Socrate
They're all crazy good Andy and i'll be dam' happy if I nailed even 1 of these
1 thing that got my attention...why do you shoot jpeg? you can get so much more from Raw specially in terms of DR (useful here w b&w feathers).
martines34 wrote:
You have set a standard with this series.
Thanks for sharing.
Martines34,
I believe it's in our nature (humans) to keep improving at what we do. I'm still in the process of learning and experimenting. This is just to share my findings along the way.
Thank you for the comment.
I still use PP now, only for some slight leveling (if required), and cropping (sometimes). The exposure control is probably from my training in Photography school back in the early-80's, when there were no Digital cameras, and we had to be able to calculate the exact exposure at any given time of day, weather condition, etc. using our heads, without the need of a luxmeter. I think that helped. 
