Pine Marten

[Len Modderman]

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8388/8556618102_8becd5189e_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/snapcam/8556618102/)

This photo was taken in Algonquin Park, ON in March 2013 with a Nikon D300s, 300mm f2.8 lens with 1.4x teleconverter with the setting indicated at the end as it was the end of the day and getting dark as well as being overcast: f4, 1/1000, ISO 800 with +1ev compensation. The snow seems a little washed out when I uploaded it on Flickr but it is better on the original in Lightroom.

[Steve Kaluski]

Hi Len, and a big warm welcome to the Wildlife part of the Forum. When you have a minute, take a browse through the Forum, there is lots to explore and everyone is very friendly and we certainly don't bite on here. :w3

I'm glad to see that you were able to resolve the little hiccups and if you need any further assistance, just shout. :wave:

It's often easier and better to upload direct from your HD/Desktop and avoid any Third party issues. Will come back with some feedback on the image later, however please feel free to chime in on any existing threads, as it's always nice to get fresh thoughts and ideas.

Just a thought, but you might like to also add a brief intro about yourself & your Photography in the Introduction section of the Forum. :w3

All the best.
Steve

[Steve Canuel]

Nice to get such an open, full bodied shot of one of these. I like the pose with the tail curled back under the body. A touch more light on the body would probably work for me. Despite the bright, all white surroundings, it has the feel of a cold, darkening, deep in the north woods feel that I think comes off well with the subject.

[Nancy Bell]

Congrats on getting such a good image of a Pine Marten, with it looking straight at you! The marten is dark and it would be nice if you could tease some more details from the dark fur. At the same time the eyes could be lightened to the same degree as the fur. I can see a bit of a highlight in the eyes that could have some added brightness to it. The touch of snow on the nose adds a bit of humor and character to the otherwise serious business of finding a meal in the snow.

[Cheryl Arena Molennor]

I love the snow on the nose and the curious glare. Nice low shooting angle also

[Len Modderman]

Thanks for the comments. I will work on the suggestions given. Len

[Rachel Hollander]

Hi Len and welcome to the Wildlife Forum. It's really nice to see a pine marten and also to see such a great image of one. The snow on the nose adds a cuteness factor. I would open up the midtones on the marten a little perhaps with a levels adjustment moving the middle slider to about 1.15 or so. I would also try a luminosity mask on the snow to try and tame some of the brighter highlights. There's a sticky at the top of the forum in case you aren't familiar with luminosity masks. Finally, there's a slight blue cast to the snow behind the marten, this is often natural and helps to convey the cold feeling but if it were mine I might reduce it slightly. Looking forward to seeing more images from you.

TFS,
Rachel

[Steve Kaluski]

Hi Len, some very good advice based on the above, and yes I agree, there is more you can get from the image, it's just a matter of how to extract it, as you may find you need to create two files, one for the snow, the second for the PM and combine. I just quickly tried and even from the OP I could extract more tone & detail from the web image so with the RAW you should be able to do more. :S3:

In reposting I might trim some off the top as there is quite a bit there and a slight reduction I feel would help. I think you could have a afforded a bit more DOF, as the SS was OK. How did you meter for exposure, on the PM or the snow? If you do revisit the image in LR then I suggest you either adjust the Cyan/Blue, and or apply some Chromatic Aberration adjustment to help on the tail fringing.

Look forward to seeing a RP soon.

TFS
Steve

[Colin Driscoll]

A lovely animal nicely shot and a bit of PP will do it more justice. I would *** some canvass on the right to have the animal a bit left of centre.

[Jim Thomas]

Adorable! The last time I saw a pine martem it was killing my chicken! I was so excited to see one I just let him have it, was a mean chicken anyway. Foreground seems overly flat and bright, not sure if you could get some of yhe texture back there.

Jim

[Morkel Erasmus]

Late to the party but welcome, Len...
A lovely image, with some great suggestions given. I will await your repost before I add more thoughts.
Looking forward to even more of your photography on the forum...

PS: What's the origin of your surname? For interest' sake - if your surname is read in my mother tongue of Afrikaans, it translates directly to English as "Mud Man" :w3

[Len Modderman]

Thanks everyone for the comments. I will try to work on them with the suggestions given and repost in a while. Morkel, with respect to the origin of my name, the family crest is a Mud Machine as apparently they invented such a machine a long time ago. Cheers everyone.

[Len Modderman]

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8388/8556618102_dd543710a8_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/snapcam/8556618102/)Reposted with some changes but not able to do much more at this time.

[Steve Kaluski]

Hi Len, the RP is far better, certainly in the snow. Obviously this is where 'personal preference' comes into play, but I prefer the major body ie the warm brown of the OP, the head I think is somewhere between the two postings, as it needs in the RP just that little bit of contrast to define things more. Great to see you revisiting the image and taking on board the feedback. With interaction & feedback it's the way to go, and your overall photography will come on in leaps & bounds. :w3