Maggie

[Sully]

Going to be brave and post here in the bird section for critique ...... I think birds are not my thing only one reasonable shot out of 15 .... we have around 8 maggies currently visiting the yard ..... singing up a storm and carrying on like juvenile delinquents. Jack has learnt not to wander 'into the open' when they are around

[kevinj]

Not bad at all Barb,nice detail and well lit considering it`s in the shade a bit.Well done,I also like the way you`ve gotten down to his level,always worth the effort,well,the effort for me is getting back up again.

[avkomp]

think you did a good job with the exposure on this one.
critique wise, perceived eye contact is the big thing with bird photography, even though the eye is clear and sharp (also probably the main thing in this genre) you get the impression that the head is slightly turned away from the viewer. looks like the birds arent put off by your presence, so you could make a small noise, a whistle or something to get the bird to turn for the full eye contact.
if you got 8 visiting the yard there will be plenty of opportunities on offer too.
as for birds not being your thing, is a case of practice. it it was easy everyone would be doing it........... something inherently frustrating in a subject that can just up and fly away

[Isac]

Wonderful capture Barb. They're not just a black and white bird - they display some great colours when in the right light, as this is. I do agree with Stephen about the eye thing, it's very important, so keep at it. Well done.

[Sully]

Not bad at all Barb,nice detail and well lit considering it`s in the shade a bit.Well done,I also like the way you`ve gotten down to his level,always worth the effort,well,the effort for me is getting back up again.

Thank you Kevin
I use a camp stool to get down lower

think you did a good job with the exposure on this one.
critique wise, perceived eye contact is the big thing with bird photography, even though the eye is clear and sharp (also probably the main thing in this genre) you get the impression that the head is slightly turned away from the viewer. looks like the birds arent put off by your presence, so you could make a small noise, a whistle or something to get the bird to turn for the full eye contact.
if you got 8 visiting the yard there will be plenty of opportunities on offer too.
as for birds not being your thing, is a case of practice. it it was easy everyone would be doing it........... something inherently frustrating in a subject that can just up and fly away

Thank you Stephen

He was looking up into the tree (at that split second) as several others were up there .....aerial attacks are common among them, so they always seem to be on guard .... they were feeding of tiny flying bugs so were jumping around quite a bit too ..... shall keep trying

Wonderful capture Barb. They're not just a black and white bird - they display some great colours when in the right light, as this is. I do agree with Stephen about the eye thing, it's very important, so keep at it. Well done.

Thank you Isac

They are quiet this morning .... must be in some one else's yard