Hidden Hunter

[Morkel Erasmus]

Sorry for keeping on posting monochrome/duotone images, but as I said I am working up a new series and having a blast in the process :bg3:
BTW Steve this is a different frame from the one you saw previously...


This is from the far northern Kruger National Park. I mentioned previously how I love capturing a truly wild leopard. As much as I enjoy the proximity and images you can achieve in a place like the Sabi Sands where you are almost driven up the leopard's backside, it's the thrill of finding your own skittish leopard that is not accustomed to vehicles that gets my heart racing even more. :Whoa!:


This youngster was hiding in a thicket after mom went off hunting. We had just missed them sitting by the roadside for an hour (I was shooting vultures on an elephant carcass, go figure ) and when we arrived they were gone. The people that were parked there moved off, and I told my wife to check again (she has the better pair of eyes)...soon enough she spotted this guy lying down in the mopani thickets. He eventually moved into a palm thicket and peeked out the other side, where I fired off a few frames. :e3


What do you think? I converted to stark B&W here as it shows the leopard's eyes better, gets rid of the colourful leaves in the way that distract, and conveys the mood I wanted to portray.


Techs:
Nikon D3s with Nikkor 500mm f4 VR-II
f4.0 @ 1/800 SS @ ISO-450
cropped from horizontal

[Randy Stout]

Morkel:

Perfect use of B&W. Simplifies the image to the essentials, those eyes. Works great for me!

Cheers

Randy

[Cheryl Arena Molennor]

I so admire those of you that get out there and capture these images. This one is cool Morkel and does show the shyness of the cat hiding in the grasses

[Marina Scarr]

One of the best of your B&W series, Morkel. It's amazing how little of the cat you are actually showing here, but how powerful the capture is. Those eyes bore a hole through the viewer. I might consider a slight change in composition to make it even stronger. I would take a tad off of the top and right to bring the face a little more off center, more into the upper right.

[Andreas Liedmann]

Hey Morkel,
just love this one .

What a great software trick on a "really , i mean really average:w3 :t3 image , i need to get this tricks to pump up my images.

Back to be serious , very powerful looking capture pushed right into the eyes of the subject, with great details where it counts.
You have done a good job on directing the viewers eyes to the main points in the image.

I would slightly lighten the iris to make them more stand out, just a tad.and maybe, not sure ,the black diagonal grass stem toning down a bit. just personal.

Just right , to print and pop it to wall in my little office.

Congrats on this one.Nicely done

Andreas

[Rachel Hollander]

Morkel - this is very effective with the piercing eyes coming through the palms. You can feel the tentativeness of the cub. The conversion also works well. Just wish the grass on the right wasn't intruding on the face but at least it's not across the eye. Might want to burn the lighter areas near the bottom of the image, particularly the lone one on the rhs bottom edge.

TFS,
Rachel

[Hilary Hann]

Works for me Morkel, very nice.

[Steve Kaluski]

Hi Morkel, I think I do prefer this image in B/W, it has more 'presece' for me, and conveys the message well using this medium.

Personally I'm not sold on the format and prefer the more safer route of 3x2, having the right eye (as viewed) in the top left of the RHS middle square, but that just me :bg3: I also wonder if the whites could just do with a little more in Levels ie 240, but selectively applied. However I'm away, so just a thought. Nice to see something different.

TFS
Steve

[Andrew McLachlan]

Hi Morkel...I love it! The stare is very penetrating and I think the use of the B&W has only improved this aspect of the image. Very nice capture!

[Jamie Douglas]

This is one of those images Morkel that will impress experienced photogs and will wow the non photogs and entry level amateurs. This has enlarged print in a gallery written all over it.

Good work :5

Jamie</SPAN>

[Morkel Erasmus]

Thank you very much for the kind comments everyone.
I know many would like this with a more "ROT" placement of the leopard, and it works, just wanted the leopard centred for my own tastes.
Steve - will punch up those whites some more :w3

[Dumay de Boulle]

I like the secrecy you capture, I think it speaks for the nature of the animal. I can see it in a coffee table book

[Stu Bowie]

Hi Mork, this is brilliant. Great conversion, and the leopard pops so well through the foliage. I like this lots.

[Morkel Erasmus]

Thanks a lot Dumay and Stu for your comments...
:bg3: