a gentle critique

[Kathleen]

I was driving along a country road & decided to pull off to the side for a rest. It was one of those cases of being in the right place at the right time. At the side of the road was a bog & to my excitement, standing so close to my car that I could almost touch it was a Great Blue Heron. I simply rolled down the window & snapped away. I'd welcome a critique or comments on the photo.
http://picasaweb.google.com/phototreasury/Birds/photo#5226251421659162578

 

[NateS]

I was driving along a country road & decided to pull off to the side for a rest. It was one of those cases of being in the right place at the right time. At the side of the road was a bog & to my excitement, standing so close to my car that I could almost touch it was a Great Blue Heron. I simply rolled down the window & snapped away. I'd welcome a critique or comments on the photo.
http://picasaweb.google.com/phototreasury/Birds/photo#5226251421659162578

It's lucky that you got so close. I never have that kind of luck it seems. The composition could use some work....like having it more toward the rear of the frame instead of the center/front.

It also appears soft as if this were a crop or just misfocused. Maybe it's due to shooting from a car with vibrations.

Those are my thoughts regarding a critique. By the way asking for a gentle critique isn't going to get you as honest of critiques from many people. I myself almost didn't critique since it seemed you wanted only nice critiques instead of useful info......(that's just the way I interpreted your title)

 

[Kathleen]

No, not at all. I'm looking for an honest & yes helpful critique. I'm sorry if the title was misleading, if there is something wrong with the photo/what I can do to improve it, I more than welcome the help. I said gentle because I've seen some rather harsh critiques on other forums. I can see your point of having it more to the rear, sadly that was impossible because the bird was just off the road & pretty much below me. Thank you for your comments.