Desc: Took a shot of this bird around mid-day in a nearby lake with lots of water lilies around.
EXIF: Canon EOS: 17-85 @ 85mm: ISO=100: Tv=1/125: Av=f/16; Metering=Evaluative

Excellent environmental capture, Reyno... amazing colors!

It's very good as it is, but allow me to find a couple of nits:

1. The egret's plumage is blown a bit. The rest of the scene is exposed well, so if you shot in RAW, this can be easily toned down locally.

2. The second nit is very subjective and is purely based on individual shooter's taste. I'd probably shoot at a little bit lower angle and move some steps to my right, so I can eliminate the tree stump from the frame. I'd also try to place the bird either in the upper or lower third point at the right.

I salute your candor in asking for critiques... really, I strongly believe that peer opinion can help us improve our craft....:)

Not too long ago, I joined Naturescapes* , a site where the master bird shooters of the world post, so I can subject my newbie bird captures to expert critique. The comments are always given in a constructive manner, not in a personal way. These helped me a lot in my learning curve.

* http://www.naturescapes.net/phpBB2/viewforum.php?f=3

Regards,

Romy

Thanks for your comments and suggestions Romy.
Funny because I also posted this in the other forum and, yes, the tree stump came out as distraction. Personally, I'm open to almost any suggestion to improve the quality of my work. I find it interesting that when I look at my work I think that it's the greatest thing since sliced bread but when others look at it, the flaws come out without even me noticing.
Btw, thanks also for the link.