Hello Vivianne,
Trying to photograph birds
(and other wild animals) is never easy, particularly if you are trying
to get close to them. Most experts will tell you that if a photo of a
bird is to be any good, the bird needs to fill the frame. But getting
close enough to do that, without using a telephoto lens, is no easy
task. That's why we usually resort to long lenses and in the process we
get that out-of-focus background that destroys all context of where the
photograph was made.
On its own this is a reasonable portrait of a young wren and about the only thing that you need to do with this image is to use the Burn Tool in Photoshop to darken off the top of the image a little. Our eyes have a tendency to be drawn to the lightest parts of an image and that can distract from the subject, in this case the wren. Choose the Burn Tool in the Tools panel and change the Range to Midtones (that way the highlight and shadow tones will be protected). Choose an Exposure of 15% (so the effect is not too strong), and with a large soft brush paint over the background to try to make the tones more even. Don't worry too much about the white area near the rock, as that's actually drawing our eyes toward the bird. It's a subtle change I know, but it will make a big difference if you decide to print this image large. I'd also advise you to sharpen the image a little to bring out some more detail in the feathers. Again, it's hard to see the change here, but you will notice a big difference when you go to print.
What I think you should try doing the next time you go out to photograph wrens is to use a wider angle lens… but this time take a tripod and a remote release with you. Compose a picture to include a branch or a rock that the birds regularly use but this time also look at including some landscape in the background... something that adds to the story. Switch the camera to Manual Focus and try to set the focus on the spot where you expect a bird to be. Now plug the remote release into the camera and go a few metres away, preferably somewhere that is not too obvious to your subject. When you see the bird on the mark, push the release to capture the photo. I think you will be surprised by what you can achieve.
Remote releases for cameras are available in various forms, from the simple cord options that plug into you camera, through to IR remote releases and my preferred option, the radio remote. These are now becoming very affordable, and are well worth keeping in your camera bag, particularly if wildlife is your thing!
Happy shooting… Image Doctor.
Splendid Wren - Image Doctor's edited version
In this edited version we have used the the Burn Tool in Photoshop to even out the tones of the background. Our eyes tend to be drawn to the lightest parts of an image and that can distract from the subject, in this case the wren.