Pine Siskin (Carduelis pinus)

Another I was really pleased with from yesterday's songbird work. A

sliver of over-exposure on the fringes, but I still like the effect.

Your thoughts and critiques are appreciated.

I like this photo. Its nice the way it is but I think I would do three things if it were mine.

First I would mask off the bird and the branch. Then I would apply a little Guassian blur to the background to soften or elimate some of the visible lines.

Second I would darken the edges of the photo. that would have the effect of making the bird stand out more and draw your eyes to it. Thats a tried and true trick painters have been using for hundreds of years.

Third I think I would try to lighten up the eye a bit.