March Robin

[Redgrape]

I took this picture last week at some local woods that have bird feeders etc. I took it on AV using my Canon 70-300mm IS lens with settings of f/5.6 & 1/60 & ISO at 200. I have cropped it slightly (comments on the photo are very welcome because I know I have lots to learn).

I would like to know how the colour/light/dark etc is on other peoples screens because I have just calibrated my screen.

Redgrape

[Canon-Fodder!]

Re: March Robin

Hi Redgrape;

Image looks a little on the soft side, and it's a shame you weren't a tad higher to get his feet & tail end in the shot... As for focal point; it looks like you're on his red-breast; so the head appears to be OOF... Always best to aim for sharp focus on the eyes if possible.

But... colours look good; so I'd say your monitor is calibrated OK...

[Redgrape]

Re: March Robin

Thanks for the comments Canon Fodder, I couldn't actually get his feet & tail in because he was stood on the far edge of the bird table & his feet where in amongst the food so couldn't actually see them. I can see what you mean about the the head being out OOF & very soft looking. I did take it in Raw so could it be improved on in PSE?
I do know I have an awful lot to learn!

[Canon-Fodder!]

Re: March Robin

I can see what you mean about the the head being out OOF & very soft looking. I did take it in Raw so could it be improved on in PSE?

Hi Redgrape;

If the original is a RAW file; try working it first in Canon's DPP. It came with your Utilities Disc and is Canon's dedicated RAW converter. Personally I find it does a much better job than Adobe's ACR which you get with PSE... I try & do as much as possible in DPP before converting the file. If there is still work to do in PSE, then convert first to a TIFF file so you preserve the maximum amount of data. Convert to JPEG as the last action... RAW & TIFF files are 'lossless' so retain 100% of the data you have captured; whereas a JPEG file is a 'lossy' format and discards a great deal of data to condense the file. The more you re-work & re-save a JPEG the more data you lose... (although it may not be noticeable unless you do a lot of re-working & re-saving.)

The key advantage of working in RAW is that you can go back at any time and 'UNDO' all the changes you have made and start again. That's because the changes are stored in a sub-file and do not permanently change the base RAW 'negative' file.

As for your image; yes it can be improved with some judicious 'sharpening' but not too much or you'll cause halo'ing and/or pixellation! I find that working with the image viewed at 50% in DPP is the best option to see what effect your changes are having on the image... If you're going to 'sharpen' in DPP, I typically aim for a level that is just shy of pixellation on screen - but then I prefer sharper to softer images... If you use PSE then use 'UnSharp Mask' to do the 'sharpening'... An apparent mis-nomer in name, but it's all wrapped up in film negative history... The PSE HELP file will tell you all about the settings; but start with Amount of 100%; Radius of 1 Pixel and Threshold of 1 Level. Then you can just play with the sliders to see what effect changing each does...

Hope I'm not 'presuming' too much here; if I have - then just ignore me!

Cheers...

[Redgrape]

Re: March Robin

Canon Fodder you are not presuming too much at all and I am very grateful for your trouble in explaining ways forward for me. I will have a play around with the Raw File in DPP.
Thanks for the information & tips, much appreciated.