Kingfisher

[pinakibaidya]

.C&c welcome.

[JPS]

Very nice, very nice indeed.
The only thing I would consider is to clone out the twigs above and below the one the bird is standing on, I do not think they add anything to the picture.
Other than that; which is a matter of personel opinion, it's a very good picture.
Well done.
John

[Dave Humphries]

I agree with John's suggestion pinakibaidya,

It might be a touch over exposed, but so are my shots of them - which are not as good as this I might add.

[jamn4ex]

sweet colors, the background here is much more easy on the eyes than the bee eater pic you also posted

[Bobobird]

Great catch. As suggested, remove the top 2 and bottom twigs.

[jprzybyla]

I am not sure where I read it but a noteable photographer was asked how a person could take better photographs... the answer was get closure. That piece of advise has stood me in good stead. There are ways to get closure, the first is to move closure ( fill the frame as much as possible while maintaining composition). A second way is to use a longer lens, which appears to bring the subject closer. A third way I have used here is a tighter crop, eliminating what is not necessary to the image. I re-worked one of your images to show you what is possible. If you wish that I remove the example I will, please let me know.

[pinakibaidya]

I am not sure where I read it but a noteable photographer was asked how a person could take better photographs... the answer was get closure. That piece of advise has stood me in good stead. There are ways to get closure, the first is to move closure ( fill the frame as much as possible while maintaining composition). A second way is to use a longer lens, which appears to bring the subject closer. A third way I have used here is a tighter crop, eliminating what is not necessary to the image. I re-worked one of your images to show you what is possible. If you wish that I remove the example I will, please let me know.

Thank you all for your viewing and valuable suggestions.Joe,I am a big admirer of your bird pics.Whatever you have told is true and i like you modified picture.Robert Capa said "If your picture is not good enough you are not close enough."I am still learning from various sources amongst which i like CIC forum very much because of your constructive criticism.One thing i would like to ask you if ever telephoto converter along with Nikkor 55-300mm would be of help to me in filling the frame?The lowest of all 500mm lens from Sigma is too costly for me.I could not crop the image tightly for fear of image quality degradation because i did not know how to control noise in Photoshop CS.

[Bobobird]

Pinak I suppose that is right? Please edit your profile and fill in your first name so that we can address each other properly.

I will jump in a bit. Yes close is best best. Next best is environmental if you cannot get too close.

Lens lusting is fine but my recommendation is to use what you have until you have perfected the skills. Going long is expensive and just because one has a really long lens does not make one a better photographer. There are some advantages in remaining at your FL for the time being - ie tracking, stealth, composition etc.

Not being able to fill a frame will do more to improve your photography because you will be forced to consider more things then just the target.

[jprzybyla]

Hello Pinaki, regarding your question concerning a tele-converter... no I do not use one. I cannot with the 55-300, the autofocus would not work well. I try to photograph where the birds are used to seeing and being around people. That allows for much closer photography. I am a big believer of what Bobo just wrote about regarding learning good technique with the equipment I have. I like you cannot afford a longer lens.

[pinakibaidya]

Thank you Bobo and Joe for giving me insight.

[Dave Humphries]

I don't believe a Nikon TC would even fit that lens, a third party one might, but it's not any area in which I have any personal experience.

Even if it did, as Joe says, AF is very unlikely to work when you're zoomed in to 300mm and would be most unlikely even at the 55mm end.