Our Mystery Reviewer for the Open category of the Our Iconic Parrots competition has chosen to reveal his identity - he is Ofer Levy.  In this competition he has chosen four images to review.

Crimson Rosella – Warren Wilson (Image #14976 - image no longer available).  This image captures a lovely behavioural interaction between the two birds. There is a good view of the eyes of both birds which adds impact to the image. The image displays excellent sharpness and a good depth of field that captures adequate detail in both birds. The ‘light’ although mostly artificial looks good to me. The colours in this image are lovely and look natural despite the use of artificial light. There is an effective use of the background in making the birds stand out. The perches are adequate and look natural. I have two suggestions for this image; a less tight crop would benefit the overall composition, as would ensuring that the bird in the foreground does not have a clipped tail.

Australian Ringneck – Georgina Steytler (Image #14598 - image no longer available).  A very good flight shot with a lovely dorsal view of the bird showing its beautiful colours. The shooting angle is excellent as is the eye contact. The photographer has ensured the the head is sharp and with adequate detail. The negative elements in the image are; the noticeable noise throughout the body – especially on the wings, hence the image quality is somewhat reduced. The overall composition is a little too tight for my taste – especially at the bottom and on the left of the image.

Double-eyed Fig-Parrot – Julie Sarna (Image #14473).  This image displays a nice composition of colours and interesting pose for the main subject. Eye contact is good and with a subtle highlight in the top of the eye. Overall the image is sharp with adequate detail. One of my concerns is the slight loss in image quality, perhaps due to a significant crop? There is also a noticeable shadow created by the fill-flash. Overall the composition is way too tight for my liking and un-balanced, especially at the bottom of the image.

Australian Ringneck – Bryon Samuels (Image #14541).  An image with excellent sharpness and detail. I would also rate the image quality as excellent. The shooting angle is good ensuring that the bird has a lovely pose and good eye contact with the viewer. I like the natural branch upon which the bird is perched. My suggestions for this image are; increase the frame size so that the size of the bird does not overwhelm the image. The image is too dark and the colours are too dull as a result of insufficient processing. The branch crossing the tail is a bit distracting.

You may have noted a common theme in all four reviews - I like my compositions to have ‘room’ around the main subject and I find that many photographers crop way too tight.