Takin Portrait

[Christopher Miller]

Another zoo photo, this time of a Takin, an animal that looks something like a cross between a goat, a wildebeest, and a muskox.

I used a very similar processing scheme as on my latest elephant photo. I darkened the BG, did some burning on parts of the takin, converted to monochrome using Silver Efex, added three Shadowhouse textures, added some sepia toning, and then finally enhanced the details using high pass.

[Cindy Cone]

Another masterful image, Christopher. The textures and lighting are wonderful, and there are just enough details. I had never heard of a takin before. Thanks for sharing.

[Nancy Bell]

Outstanding! The posture of the takin, with his head slightly bowed and his eye looking at you, really makes a grazing animal very engaging. The lighting, the details and of course the masterful mix of textures create a great image. Well done, as usual! BTW, I doubt that you could ever get such a good picture of a takin in the wild!

[Christopher Miller]

Thanks a lot, Cindy and Nancy! I forgot to mention that I also added the highlights in the eye, because there was no detail in the eye in the original image.

[Paul Lagasi]

This is one rare animal, I've only ever seen one in a German Zoo. Very nice effects and the composition is solid. Well done

[Michael Gerald-Yamasaki]

Christopher,

Greetings. Cool looking animal. Great eye contact (wish there was a bit more of the left eye). I like the toning & texture. I'm not sure about the orange along the left edge. Thanks for posting.

Cheers,

-Michael-

[Diane Miller]

Very well-done! I like the composition and not sure if I want to see the other eye or not -- I think the fact that you can't see it adds to the mystery. Nice job adding a catchlight on the eye -- it looks very natural.

[Judy Howle]

Outstanding image Christopher! Perfect processing and textures, although I agree with Michael about the orange being a bit out of sync with the rest of the image.

[Christopher Miller]

Thanks a lot, everyone! Michael and Judy, thanks for pointing out that bit of orange; I will definitely clone that out.