Love this photo of the 6' male cassowary checking out the critter in the tree before letting his young come into the clearing.
BUT low light levels - it was raining a bit and unknowledgeable photographer left it ragged.
Would like to clean it up a bit but how and with what or is it too little quality to do much. This is just a clip

http://i106.photobucket.com/albums/m269/macdoc/travel/australia%202012/Screenshot2012-04-27atApr27201274125AM.jpg

Are there KISS image improving apps out there - I certainly haven't the photoshop skill.
Thoughts?

My skills are far from expert, but I did give it a shot.

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/46939750/Linked%20Photos/macdoc%20bird.jpg

Thanks crest comes out certainly - wonder if the detail can improve at all. Curious as to what apps people use and how extensively.
I'll shift exposure at times and I've tried sharpening with marginal results. :confused:

Without doing a lot of work I got it to here.

For whatever reason this posted at about half the size. PM if you want the full image.
23895

Actually looks better downsized. What did you use?

FYi all my images are used online - never for printing.

Too much camera shake, but workable. Perhaps a tad "overworked"

If you guys want a challenge as I'd love to see that particular photo well presented.
you can download the original image.

http://i106.photobucket.com/albums/m269/macdoc/Cassowaryteddybear.jpg

http://i106.photobucket.com/albums/m269/macdoc/cassowaryteddy.jpg

I downsized mine above too and it does improve things.

KPS certain things I like but it's almost stylized which is okay but looks like a shiny coast of clear wax on all :o

27" Cinema is brutal on full sized images not shot well.....:(

Hey Macdoc, here's my attempt. Processed your first pix in Adobe Lightroom 4.

Actually looks better downsized. What did you use?

FYi all my images are used online - never for printing.

I used PS Elements. First did an overall level correction to get the contrast I liked in the non-underexposed areas. Then used magic wand set to about 30% clicked on a dark area>select similar>Feather 10px, played with the levels on this part of the image to bring out additional detail particularly in the body. Finally deselected and did a sharpen filter on the entire image followed by a sharpen edges.

FYI, I used the Mac Preview set of tools. By far way easier for novices to play with and see what adjustments will do for your image. Pretty basic but with good results for the most part and a surprisingly powerful tool to use. Simply using the slide controls under Tools>Adjust color will give you amazing results.

As a test, try it yourself with your original image. First alter exposure, then contrast, then saturation, then tint and finally a bit of sharpness and you are done in 20 seconds. Beats the snot out of PS for a beginner with very acceptable results.

For reference on cassowaries - whatever reason the video coped with the dim lighting fine and sheen on the feathers and texture on the neck colours shows up - even zoomed as it is toward the end of the clip. Click on the image to play

http://i106.photobucket.com/albums/m269/macdoc/travel/australia%202012/th_P1030976.jpg (http://s106.photobucket.com/albums/m269/macdoc/travel/australia%202012/?action=view&current=P1030976.mp4)

http://i106.photobucket.com/albums/m269/macdoc/travel/australia%202012/th_P1030986.jpg (http://s106.photobucket.com/albums/m269/macdoc/travel/australia%202012/?action=view&current=P1030986.mp4)

Yeeha - I like the sheen on the feathers and the leaves seem to retain the wetness on them.
Maybe a bit too light around the head area as if there was some information loss.

THe second still shot is blurred in part as the cassowaries head was in motion - he nailed the teddy bear a couple of times with his beak.

I don't quite understand why the video coped with the low light even when zoomed at the end of the first clip. :confused:

I've used the preview tools as well on a few shots usually just to sharpen a bit and control the exposure.

Appreciate the efforts guys. Seeing this amazing bird a few feet away was a big thrill - even the staff there had not seen one in three months.
My GF had seen a number on biology field trips and she was the one wagging the finger at me about being careful - read up and found out why :yikes::yikes: