mikepalo

Unfortunately the image is slightly dark to begin with. This has already been lightened in PS within the realms of what are possible without adding a tremendous amount of grain.

The major problem with this bird was that it was on the West side of a boardwalk about 40min after sunrise in deep shade. I would have waited for this little guy to get in the sun but every time he got into the open he would DART into the next patch of reeds and I would have to wait 5 min for him to pick his way through them back into the "open," and he was working his way farther and farther to being under the boardwalk I was standing on and not allowed to get off.

 

It's a fail in equipment which I do not know how to get around,

ExposureTime: 1/250 s
FNumber: f/5.6
ISOSpeedRatings: 320

-a tripod possibly could have allowed me to kick down the exposure time slightly more

-f/5.6 is the lowest the Nikkor 28-300mm can go reasonably without a heavy vignetting being introduced

-shooting the D200(7 years old at this point) anything above ISO400 is completely unusable imo

I'm curious what did you mean by, I believe one needs to "see" the bird rather than "look" for it..... just MHO. Thanks for the comments btw.

 

I have struggled back and forth shooting wildlife with, getting shots

that are simple snapshot portraits instead of a unique photograph.

This is a elusive Virginia Rail. It is a rare find and a decent

portrait, BUT is it a photograph worthy of a wall hanging? What would

make it a wall hanger?

I'm curious. Firstly I love the clarity in the eye itself, I love the reflection, but I'm curious what were you shooting through which made those soft spots across the image? I've seen softness like this through chain link but this seems smaller. Was it mesh?

I wanna start by saying fantastic shot. I love how close she came to get that shot. The colors are great and the detail on the teeth is really nice.

But then I want to continue by saying, you have been diving for 30+ years, you should know better. As a fellow diver and shark advocate, PLEASE DO NOT FEED THE SHARKS! This creates an association with the animals between people and food, and this is where issues happen. You fed her which is all fine and good and a one time instance is not the problem but now she will come up to other people looking for food (which in all reality this probably isn't her first meal from people if she followed you as she did up to the boat.)Now you get a diver who isn't AS intelligent or experienced with sharks and thinks A) this shark is attacking me or B) this shark is harmless let me grab/touch/molest it and now you have an ACTUAL shark attack on your hands. In which worst case scenario both the shark and the person are now dead along with the entire boat being traumatized, best case scenario both survive and now that person is adamantly AGAINST shark preservation.

These beautiful animals need all the help they can get when it comes to preservation. No fishery on the planet has ever withstood a collapse when man has put heavy fishing pressure on it. Sharks are under one of the most indiscriminate and unsupervised pressures ever with the fin trade. Don't help it along. She is an apex predator treat her with the respect for the great hunter she is.

Sorry that's my little rant. :) As far as the shooting keep it up your shots look fantastic.

Gorgeous composition almost a TOUCH too warm tho for my liking, but gorgeous non-the-less.

Comments Welcome. Thanks

I had alot of spacing to move around in cropping on the web. How isthe orientation of the spider in the frame? Should there be more web,Less web? Comments welcome.

-Michael Palozzola

Comments welcome. I loved the color of the eyes and the positioningbut I wasn't sure about the full color. I settled on this compilationof color and B&W, what do you think?

-Michael Palozzola

Comments Welcome.

-Michael Palozzola

Hows the cropping?

-Michael Palozzola

Todd and this tapier were both trying to figure the other out. How isthe cropping? I liked it tall but how does it work for you? Commentswelcome.

-Michael Palozzola

Comments welcome. Check the black and white version as well, which isbetter?

-Mike

Comments appreciated. How does it work in Black and White?

-Mike

Comments welcome. I loved this little guy's personality.

-Mike

I cant tell if enough of him is in focus or if I even like the focus

as is.

Comments welcome. Hows the Cropping?

Comments welcome. I Just started shooting with flash. How could i doit better? Ideas?

-Mike

Comments are appreciated. Thank you

-Michael Palozzola

Comments are appreciated. Thank you

-Michael Palozzola

I am normally a "uncluttered shooter" as well. Personally I think the "clutter" in this shot MAKES the picture. In my opinion the key is yes there is clutter but there is nothing completely blocking the crystal clear tac-sharp eyes or the mouth, teeth, and the snarl. This is a Fantastic Picture I absolutely love it. Keep it up.

-Michael Palozzola

I think this shot is phenomenal. It reminds me of a concept in ancient lore which u kind of caught with ur title. On the sea, what is known as the Green Flash happens at sunset occasionally right when the sun sinks under the horizon, and seaman's lore states that it occurs when a soul passes from the land of the dead back into that of the living. This photo looks like it is frozen seascape and it is a beautiful "gateway" through the mist. Keep it up defiantly :)

-Michael palozzola

OK I would like to start by saying this shot is fantastic and I love it. It is very well done and I spent a little time trying to figure out how you would get so close to the horses at such an unusual time of day (late dusk). Until I look a little closer then looked in your description. The ONLY nit picking I can do Is warn you to watch what ever way you applied this filter (im assuming its a filter) because your borders are heavily darkened moreso then the center of the frame, which makes the image Appear altered. The Moon is done very well also. Lastly I do agree with the other individual who said that more detail on the lead horse would ++++++ this shot into the Spectacular range. But again those 2 issues are nit picking. The shot is fanominal, keep it up.

-Michael Palozzola

This is my first attempt at a meteor shower shot. I combined themeteor from a more zoomed frame with this background, but i did notmove or enlarge the meteor. I made sure the sizing and positioning wasall correct from the original. Let me know what you think. Anything Icould do better?

Thanks

-Mike Palozzola

I love the idea of this image. two things that I believe could make it better:

If possible if it could be shot so the larger boat has the same perspective as the smaller one, that you can see the deck.

and somehow the elimination of the wall in the back ground, if it was water back there would be perfect but sometimes you have to take what you can get.

Other then that. I love the shot the clouds colors comp and concept

-Mike