He does look as tho he's groovin' to the tunes. Great timing with the shutter button. It looks to me as tho there's lots of contrast; his features stand out nicely against the water.
I think his features stand out nicely, too. I've gotten more contrast on light areas by bumping up the highlights. Love the pose, the details on the bird, and great capture!
oh my! spectacularly timed capture! i think the contrast is fine... primarily you've got good focus on the bird while the water in the background is somewhat blurred, so i think that helps separate the two quite well... if you are looking to try something else - and you're working with lightroom, perhaps add a smidgeon of clarity to the top / back of the bird? i wouldn't bump up the highlights too much more because i think it might blow them out?
@northy thanks Northy, yes, that's the problem, any more and his back is blown out, as it is I don't think there's much detail left on his back. The water is a muddy yellow so not very nice even in colour. Thanks for the suggestion, I will see if there's anything there to retrieve.
@bella_ss if the water has a yellow cast and the pelican has none, you might be able to play with the yellow slider in black and white (maybe to darken it a bit) to see if that helps create more of a contrast between the two...
Interesting to follow @northy 's comments/suggestions and very helpful to me. The photo looks terrific -- the dance title took me right to its feet and they pop easily.
@northy Thanks so much for taking the time, I went back thinking "yes, that might work" but the water is even more blah than I thought so it seems I will have to be content with this :)
Sheralee - it really is a pretty spectacular capture, and i think it came out quite beautifully... if you're having to "settle", i don't think it's by much :)
