High perch - American Kestrel

Suggestions/comments appreciated; thanks

Hello Dieter super shot looks real good good job. Rgds DC

I usually don't rate bird photos but I like this one very much. The colors are great. Best regards Dieter.

This is beautiful

This is another of my practice birds up here. Every other telephone wire has one where I live. (Hint: if you see something that looks like this on a telephone pole, not wire...you might have a Merlin---they never sit on the wire.) This is a pretty, but soft focus, image. The bird is much more beautiful if you catch him in profile or in flight (modestly, like my posted shot). The bokeh is great and complementary. Maybe a bit too much space on the right...crop to the left of the sticks?

William, I wish we had more here. This one sure gave me some workout yesterday chasing it all over Ellwood Mesa. I wish I knew where the softness comes from; the focus appears to be spot-on in my opinion. Maybe just the distance, this one never let me get any closer than may be 30 yards. I was considering the attached, just wasn't sure; is that what you had in mind? Regards, Dieter PS: got him in flight to, coming up soon.

I like the shot, also. Perhaps the perception of softness comes from the distance which you captured the image; haze and heat. It appears that a slight breeze was blowing ruffling up the feathers a bit giving it a soft look. I guess I don't mind the twigs on the right. Cropping seems to center the bird too much but centering in a facing portrait isn't a bad think IMO. Perhaps clone out the furthest twig on the right and crop to the other twig?

 

The colors and contrast on spot on.

 

Ray

Thank you for your comments, Ray. It was actually blowing pretty strong yesterday afternoon when the shot was taken. I have seen this guy "windsurfing" above the cliffs of Ellwood Beach: no wing movement and sometimes almost stationary. When actually flying forward, he and some seagulls got blown about quite a bit. This shot was a about 200 yards in from the cliffs were the wind wasn't quite as strong but still bad enough for me trying to hold the camera still. Regards, Dieter

The crop in your revised image looks good to me, Dieter. Please don't take the soft image too much to heart. It is still a nice shot. I prefer focus on the softer side, than the over-tweaked harsh side. Now look for a similar bird with only one facial stripe...the Peregrine Falcon. Probably a few around your area.

Birders keep telling me about peregrine sightings; one even told me he witnessed one grabbing a pigeon in mid-air. I might have seen some in a distance but never close enough for a shot. Regards, Dieter

Very Nice! Awesome capture regards, Eppo