nz black robin

bechdan

Senior Member
other than being compressed to jpeg this is unedited, how could I have improved the shot? Im not used to taking wildlife photos, usually just my cat or insects.


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ohkphoto

Snow White
other than being compressed to jpeg this is unedited, how could I have improved the shot? Im not used to taking wildlife photos, usually just my cat or insects.

With wildlife, it's hard to improve the capture. A lot of times you just have to take what you can get; however, good or creative post-processing goes a long way. You, the photographer, can still do a better job post-processing than your camera.

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fotojack

Senior Member
Yup, just like Don and Helene said....take a little time to do some basic PP (Post Processing). Give it some visual interest, brightening up, give it a bit of "punch". I wanted to see the eyes of this bird, so I color corrected it just a tad:

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bechdan

Senior Member
oh yeah i do usually post process all my pics, just happens to be this one was one I took whilst travelling and forgot about it, I thought it would be a good one to post and ask for advice on the photography side of things rather than the editing which Im quite confident of doing
 

nzswift

Senior Member
I don't mean to be a pedantic smart ass but as a "local" that is not a NZ black robin. The black robin was only found in the Chatham Islands and in the 80's was the world's most endangered bird. Only five remained and only two were females, one of which had never produced a fertile egg. A massive conservation program was in place and today there are more than 200 scattered around various offshore predator free islands.
There is a feel good story for all the greenies :)
The bird you have photographed is most likely a North Island Robin.
 

nzswift

Senior Member
Hope you enjoyed your stay here... It's a pretty nice place photographically - diverse environments in a few hundred kms. Heaps of unique bird life.
 

Kodiak

Senior Member
Hey Dan,

Cool shot! …though your birdie landed in the open! … very dangerous times ahead should
he not decide quickly to move his but out of there!

I think that you photograph is very good because all in it is natural! May I congratulate
you on your understanding of your gear? Your setup is absolutely correct: vivid colours
and very sharp details among other things!

Let's put something straight here!

If I am offered a wildlife scene to look at, my first concern should go to the quality of
the photograph in the sense and spirit it was taken. You may be a hobbyist, and may
not be aware of all that may be done with a picture but, by default, one would help you
only if suggesting ways to render what you captured.

I'm very sorry "Tracsoft - Don Kuykendall", "ohkphoto", and "fotojack", but all your
renditions have nothing natural anymore!

Such a birdie MUST BE CAMOUFLAGED to survive! Razor sharp contrast, parade colours
and what not, are not among the strategies of the spices. As long as the bird can't fly
decently, discretion is required!

The idea of giving a first-flight bird the colours that should normally be wormed by a
adult cannot enter in the scope of your request:"…how could I have improved the shot?"

I took this shot this spring in central Europe and I see many similarities with your
birdie, though yours is older than mine.

View attachment 44119

Respectfully,
 
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STM

Senior Member
The very first thing that caught my attention is the composition. The bird is smack dab in the middle of the frame. This makes the image look somewhat static composition wise. By moving it close to a vertical third (the right one in this case because the bird is looking to the left) is a much better alternative. The background is also somewhat distracting and competes with the bird for your attention.

I cropped the image to place the bird closer to that vertical third and darkened the background to make it less obtrusive.

blackrobin_zps818c59df.jpg
 

bechdan

Senior Member
so is that what Ive photographed too then, a south island robin, ive just googled black robin and they do indeed look different. thanks!
One of the great things about most of the wildlife in NZ is that they arent as easily scared as ones in the UK as they have few natural predators. A Weka just came up to me once when I was fishing and started pecking around my feet

What was yours taken with?
 

nzswift

Senior Member
As yours was taken at Punakaiki it will be a SI robin too. Yours looks like a chubby juvenile probably being fed by its parents.
You are right, lots of NZ native birds have little fear of humans. Doesn't make them easy to photograph though because they are rarely stationary.
Mine was shot with a D600 and 24-120 AFD lens
 

Bill16

Senior Member
I like all the renditions of this photo posted here. I think which rendition you might want to go with would depend on how you want to see it. Unaltered for the bird watchers and naturalists,altered to make the bird stand out more for those unconcerned with spieces color during the bird's life cycle, and just interested in how cool it looks(wanting it to standout a bit to see it better).
I guess it all boils down to what the photographer thinks fits their artistic vision. :D
 

Hminx

Senior Member
north island robin on holiday near Punakaiki!
Sorry to be a train spotter here but Punakaiki is in the south island and this does look like a south island Robin. That aside I'm reasonably happy with this as is, main thing I'd like improved in PP is to bring the eye out of the shadow.I think you will find there is enough detail left in the image to do this.
 
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