Male Leopard Portrait

[Dumay de Boulle]

Hi folks, haven't posted for a while no excuses but thought I would post a male Leopard we have been seeing regularly and he is a lovely guy. Got this one shortly after he had killed a warthog, you can see the blood on the nose mouth and whiskers. He rally has been giving us some great sightings.

MK III
100-400
AV f6.3
TV 1/125
Exp +0.33
ISO 500



<iframe width="468" height="60" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" src="http://mer54715.datafeedfile.com/widget/aff_widget_prdt_generate-2.0.php?aff_num=10536&aff_net=1&widget_num=2444"><p>Sorry your browser does not support iFrame</p></iframe>

[Steve Kaluski]

Hi Dumay, well this is certainly 'in your face' and I love it, for me there is little to really comment on as you have good detail, clarity and depth to the image. Perhaps you could have more HA towards camera, but I'm easy and happy as presented. I like the vibrant BKG, as it lifts the image and provides a nice backdrop, however you might want to consider just trying to knock back one or two of the brighter highlights?

One question, was there any grass near the mouth as the RH front tooth (as viewed) looks like it has a hint of green as it disappears into the roof of the mouth? :Whoa!:

Good to have you back, I hope it's for a little longer too, appreciate, like others, your interaction. :5

TFS
Steve

PS Thanks for the confirmation.

[Rachel Hollander]

Hi Dumay - Interesting to see the vibrant greens of this time of year and a good look at the leopard. Nice detail and sharpness. The blood really adds to the story. I hope to see more of this leopard and the other wildlife from your new location.

TFS,
Rachel

[Sanjeev Aurangabadkar]

Hi Dumay,
I like the portrait, nice and powerful looking fella!

[Brendon Cremer]

Great portrait, good detail and clarity. I would possibly try reducing the vibrance in the BG as well as the highlights a tad and loose the grass in front of his nose. The leopard is great is lacking a little colour possibly maybe try increasing the colour balance a little to the red channel and a little to the yellow channel. These adjustments just play more to my personal taste, so you may not necessarily agree;-)

[Rudi van den Heever]

Great to see you are still around Dumay! All the best for 2013...:bg3:

Lovely shallow DOF here and awesome contrast against that green BG!:w3

[Dumay de Boulle]

Thanks for the comments folks...
Steve I looked at the RAW and I see the green on the top lip and both canines. Well spotted, I didn't remove any grass. The only thing is that it could be while he was feeding near the stomach sack with the grass inside.
Brendon, took this image in heavily overcast conditions and I always find the colors quite flat. I pushed them up a lot in original PP and felt I may have overdid it. I tried your suggestions and i'm pleased with the results...Darkened the BG and added some red and yellow selectively to the Leopard...Let me know if I have overdone it.
Thanks Rudi all the best to you for the new year.
Thanks Rachel, I hope to share some great sightings this year.

[Brendon Cremer]

For me the RP works, better colours on the leopard and the greens in the bg are not as in your face.

[Steve Kaluski]

Thanks for the feedback on the teeth Dumay, just caught my eye. Personally I think it's a tough call between the two, but if I had to make a call then the RP. :S3:

[Andreas Liedmann]

Hi Dumay, welcome back and happy new year, hope all is good with you.

Nice one to come back with, as always no tricks , just a straight in the face image, using Steve`s words.

Like this tight portrait with good detail and colors.

RP for me.

Keep posting

TFS Andreas

[Dumay de Boulle]

Thanks for the feedback folks,

Andreas thanks for the welcome back...All the best to you for the new year too.

[Morkel Erasmus]

Hey bud, great to see you posting and active again. I hope it's a sign of things to come... :5
New lodge/location too I see? All the best!

Great detailed portrait here. Your repost looks great, nothing much to add for my tastes.
:cheers:

[Roman Kurywczak]

Hey Dumay,
A bit late to this......I would probably go somewhere in between the 2 posts. I feel the pop of the OP may have been a bit over the top......but for my tastes.....the RP took it down a bit too much. All in all tweaks to taste but the comp and overall image are fantastic.