Shy

Critiques [Translate]

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• Janice (17440)
• [2005-08-20 6:05]
• [+]

Hi Pieter, I'll go first!!
These birds are quite amazing with their sparce feathers (are they feathers?) growing on their heads and necks. You are nice and close to him, it's a pity you haven't got him looking at you to get a glint showing in the eye. But that's what taking photos is all about, eh? The subjects don't act like you always want them to.
NO, I like your shot, the BG is good, the bird is placed at a good angle. Well done, and thank you for showing...
Kia ora
Janice

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• elroyie (6403)
• [2005-08-20 6:12]

Very good portrait and very good title for this picture, the composition is very good and the background contributes a lot to this picture.

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• sway (1212)
• [2005-08-20 6:28]

Hi Pieter,
I like your shot. You have captured a nice mood with the bird, Not all animals want their picture taken ;)
TFS
:)

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• liquidsunshine (11488)
• [2005-08-20 6:29]
• [+]

A rushed weekend critique I'm afraid (I can make time for my good friend Pieter), It's great to see you're posting again.
Good sharp and clear detail. DOF is good, Exposure is spot on and BG compliments the image well. I feel you've left just a bit to much open space in the frame, or should have centred the ostrich a touch more. Good to have you back here Pieter.
Great capture, thanks for posting.
Have a great weekend

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• chiliu (6442)
• [2005-08-20 6:44]

Hi Pieter,
Very good portrait, very sharp and detailed image, good background.
Good to see you post again and TFS!

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• Aspara (64)
• [2005-08-20 6:58]

Ooh! He's so cute!!!

I love the contrast between the bird and the background!

Great shot!!! :)

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• dew77 (13069)
• [2005-08-20 7:32]

Hi Pieter!
Very good shot! I liked the DOF and POV.
I would have said 'if you had an eye contact that would be a better portrait'.But after I see the title I cannot say that.It fits your shot perfecty. So no negative critique...
TFS

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• Fisher (8915)
• [2005-08-20 7:45]

Hi Pieter,

Excellent capture and well exposed and detailed.
two things here which ahve been mentioned and I agree with. Firstly the composition, a tad more space on the right, too much on the left.
Even though the title has some say, so do I, LOL, eye contact is important.
Excellent work. It doesn't deserve 1 haha.

Mike

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• ellis49 (28681)
• [2005-08-20 11:15]

Very nice portrait, Pieter.
Maybe I should cropped it in another way, less space at the top and show little more of the neck or as Sebnem mention a portrait crop.
And give the eye little more light. Otherwise it a very good picture.
Well done, my friend.

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• Runnerduck (1847)
• [2005-08-20 11:31]

Hi Pieter

A sharp image, great detail on the head. The BG is fab.
A couple of nits, I (personally) feel there is too much room on the left. I'm not saying that a central composition would work, just less space on the left.
The eye is also lacking that ever important catchlight.
A great image, thanks for posting.
Always in a friendly way, Julia.

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• Luc (14713)
• [2005-08-20 11:56]

Pieter, I looked forward to your new photo to be able to let off stream ;-)
I am going to take the necessary time to comment on this one.
It is not easy to obtain the correct composition for this kind of subject as it is not it for a giraffe, for example.
Too much space to the left, not enouph to the right. The eye contact is the most important in such portrait, as Callie said to me long time ago (last year). He also wrote to me: "At this scale and level of photography, it is important to look at the little things that will enhance the picture even more. Not meant as a critique at all, just an observation and something to what-out for.
And as you mentioned, the better you get to know the subject, the easier it becomes to anticipate its moves." (Callie miss me a lot these days)

I do not know if the use of the flash would have improve the photo but I would have probably tried it, you know, for to obtain this little spark in the eye.
The other one was better.

Thank you for sharing picture and note.

Have a good weekend!

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• carper (8208)
• [2005-08-20 13:26]

vriend, leuk weer eens wat van je te zien,
Een prachtige kop, goede details prachtige pov en een goede dof. Het enigste hier wat ik eigenlijk mis is het oog contact. Dat geeft altijd net even iets meer aan dergelijke foto's, erg goed werk.
gr. Jaap

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• manyee (19704)
• [2005-08-20 13:43]

Hello Pieter. So good to see you posting again. I have missed you and your pictures. I agree with the others that there is too much space on the left, and the all important catchlight, as you always tell me, is missing, shyness notwithstanding. But I like the shot very much. The POV on the ostrich is excellent ( I can see inside his nostrils). The details are very sharp (those eyelashes are dreamy), and the light is perfect. The BG is beautiful. All in all a wonderful shot. Thank you for sharing, and hope to see more of you now. : )

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• marhowie (34535)
• [2005-08-20 17:45]

Cool mugshot Pieter, Sharp details, perfect light with a great neutral OOF BG. Like this POV also..Gee wiz, I can see right up those nostrils! Very well done. POST SCRIPT:
I like to comment on what I happen to like and the qualities that make me enthusiastic about a photo. But you have asked for it here, today! You're a big boy..You know what makes a photo better ;-)

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• windancer (597)
• [2005-08-20 20:29]

Interesting subject but I would not have chosen this picture to post just because the eye is covered up. Otherwise the technical details are all there. I just feel like its missing something If I can't see that eye.

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• scottevers7 (12257)
• [2005-08-20 21:33]

Hi Pieter,
Well just about everythings been covered, good and bad. So. I am just going to say keep them coming...You take great photos!
Scott

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• livios (16856)
• [2005-08-21 14:07]

Pieter, great to check you're back with another post.

I like the picture. The oof bg highlights the ostrich perfectly. Sharpness is excellent, so that one can see plenty of details. Composition is great too. What a pity we cannot see the eye, but, to me, a minor nit.

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• PDP (11755)
• [2005-08-21 17:13]

Hello Pieter, good shot. The focus is very good and pretty good DOF and nice sharpness. As others have said, the eyes need to be there and they are not. I'm not keen on the composition either. I think a portrait format would fit better here, the empty space on the left hand side adds nothing - more space in the direction the bird is looking would work well. The technical aspects are fine. As it's from a zoo and you should be able to get it better with a captive subject.

Good shot.

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• red45 (26837)
• [2005-08-22 3:12]

Good portrait Pieter! I like its softness, blurred BG and pastel colours. Good comoposition, details are ok, especially hairs. Looks shy indeed :-)

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• JeanMichel (2864)
• [2005-08-22 5:16]

Very nice, Pieter. I like the fact it's not only an ostrich portrait but that there is a mood in the pose and the presentation. Very good progresive focus blur on the subject itself, adding to the mood you convey here. Well done!

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• Comandante (1403)
• [2005-08-22 6:41]

Hello Pieter!
Lovely capture.A little overexposed top of head attracts more attention then the other parts;).Interesting and unusual POV.I think you should a little crop from left part.I liked lighting and BG very much.Thanks for sharing and it's nice to see you BG;)

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• flagman (2381)
• [2005-08-22 7:13]
• [+]

Welcome back sAner!
I read through everyone else comments before I posted this critique and I do partially agree with the general trend, but I'd like to add my own view on the comments:
Composition: Not perfect. OK, there is a lot of space on the left. The head is approximately 2/3 across the frame, so it follows the 'rule of thirds' but we all know rules are meant to be broken. I think I would have tried to either take off about 25% of the space on the left, or maybe be adventurous and try positioning the head more to the top right corner, so that he is looking into the middle of the photo. Maybe there was some more background outside your crop to make this possible, maybe not. If not, you of course can't go back and re-take it. That brings me onto my next comment. A lot of people mention the catchlight in the eye. I feel that a standard portrait with the bird looking at you would ruin this shot and make it just like every other ostrich portrait here. This is different and should be treated as so. But then again, if you WERE after a portrait and the bird never looked up, what do you do? Keep waiting with the shutter finger or take a few interesting shots while you're waiting? I know which I'd do!
Sharpness is, as always, wicked. Exposure...looks OK to me on my CRT which probably means it's a tiny bit over-exposed :)
So - composition is the main problem, I wish I could give it 1.5 points. It'll have to be 1.

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• slrnovice2 (1197)
• [2005-08-22 7:38]
• [+]

Hi Pieter, this is an unsual POV, how on earth did you manage to get higher than the head of an Ostrich? Are you 12' tall?? ;) I like the fact that it is an unusual POV and you have a good composition with excellent exposure and detail in the feathers. I do miss the catchlight in the bird's eyes but that is the only nit. Your DOF and BG are wonderful. Great shot :)

PS Do you mind if I copy your "You may hit me as hard as you can..." etc bit to use myself with my posts? I think it is a good idea to use it at the bottom of every post (rather than in an Intro profile) as that means everyone will see it. I also like the detailed info on shooting parameters you include with your posts. Can I pinch that format too? :)

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• Eko (121)
• [2005-08-22 9:51]

Hi Pieter!
Lovely Capture.She looks really shy.I liked this POV and composition very much.Thanks for posting.

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• annagrace (2992)
• [2005-08-22 18:58]

Glad to see you posting again, Pieter! This ostrich has a ridiculous haircut. I wish he was looking more forward instead of down but it is a fabulous capture nonetheless.

Alli

P.S. Your girlfriend is so cute...when are you going to put a ring on her finger? LOL!!

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• twin (3247)
• [2005-08-23 11:05]

look at the funny face... :))
great details and a wonderful light...
and amazing BG...
very well done Pieter...
congratulations...

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• thistle (9152)
• [2005-08-24 3:08]

Hi Pieter, I nearly missed that shot.
I think others hit you hard enough ;) so I just say that I like the shot very much. Well, maybe it's not perfect, but it is no doubt quite original and that makes it interesting.
WELL DONE & TFS

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• optic (0)
• [2005-08-24 22:05]

Hello Pieter,
You did a nice portrait i like it, the composition is great, colours & background beautifull & light SUPERB,
Thanks for posting,

Regards,
Christian

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• TAZ (10918)
• [2005-08-25 4:05]

This ostrich is not a playboy but it is funny ;-) It is a nice portrait well composed with blurred BG. The POV and DOF are very good. Thanks for sharing Pieter.

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• coasties (27512)
• [2005-08-27 7:23]
• [+]

Hi Pieter

Anther of your posts I missed while on holiday. Nice close shot, but as others have said the eyes have been missed. Good sharpness and details. Thanks.

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• softflower (0)
• [2005-08-29 8:48]

Very nice portrait.
Very sharp and detailed image.
I really like the contrast between the bird and the background!
Nico.

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• gerhardt (11529)
• [2005-08-30 16:56]
• [+]

Hi Pieter,

Enough said already... if it wasn't for that bullet proof vest... woof! :)

Anyway without adding insult to injury suffice to say the DOF is impressive for F5. Lovely BG, and very sharp. Go back and try this again. Get the eye and make it the main subject. It has a lot of potential.

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• schapman (0)
• [2005-09-03 17:33]

Such a cute photo! and now something a bit more constructive: well, the composition is great and corresponds very well with the title (and vise versa). The bird's head is sharp and well focused. The verdict: excellent work!

Thanks for posting.
Shelly

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• cedryk (5023)
• [2005-10-26 3:26]

Cool, detailed portrait witrh no distracting backround. TFS! Michal

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• Tommysugar (600)
• [2005-11-07 13:52]

What beautiful face! I like very much the portrait of animals, they are so expressive!
Bye Tom

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• Active (1231)
• [2005-11-14 4:33]

Hi!
What can I write here? hmm, it`s an amazing portait. Fantastic POV, sharpness, BG and colours.
Everything is nice here.
Good job!
TFS
rgds
Barbara

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• duckpond (323)
• [2005-11-20 15:48]

Good photo. I have tried to take decent photos of these guys before but it never seems to work. So this shot to me is inspirational.

Excellent composition and DOF. TFS

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• Aaltjie (0)
• [2007-05-22 8:52]

Dear Pieter

Although this is an old posting I would like to give my opinion about it and what I saw. I am so intrigued by this interesting bird and it is always a pleasure for me to search information about and look at pictures of them.

This little shy fellow looked to me like a real “Bossiekop” when I saw it. But it looks like he could be a naughty boy or could it be girl? If I am correct this is still a youngster. Did you see the cute baby ostrich posting that Loot has posted and dedicated to all the females of Trek Nature?
Please do yourself a favour and visit Junior. It is just too adorable for words. I am sure you will love it.

I must just add that I am not a great critiquer but I admire a good photo and if it is accompanied by a good note or story it makes it more appreciated.
In the beginning I have just given my appreciation on certain photographers photos, but came into hot water about it. So I have decided in the future to take a certain animal or bird or what so ever and give my humble opinion about that to various photographers and their postings. Today is the day of the ostrich.

Because I am not a photographer myself I love to look at all the beautiful photos posted on Trek Nature and wish I have started photography years ago. Unfortunately I am too old now. I just admire the talented people who do not mind to share their photographic experiences and knowledge with uninformed people like myself.

Kind regards
Aaltjie

http://www.treknature.com/gallery/Africa/South_Africa/photo112094.htm