Nyala

[Gerhard Weldhagen]

Early morning shot of a female Nyala browsing in dense thorn bush taken at Mabalingwe Nature Reserve, South Africa. Canon 1DIV, EF 300 f2.8 II, 1.4 TC, 1/320, f7.1, ISO 250, beanbag rest. Comments welcome.

[edwardselfe]

Nice photo of a secretive species. I might consider a crop of the LHS to remove the branches and that would also take the subject off-centre. Would perhaps have been good to recompose with nyala's head in top left corner and then included more of the body but perhaps you had constraints! I know that lighting like that is possible and happens for a few minutes each morning and evening, but sometimes it just looks a little unnatural (even if it's not!) - I would reduce saturation of orange (red and yellow) just slightly and see how it looks. Maybe run more sharpening too?
Thanks for posting a nice image of something different.
Ed

[Rachel Hollander]

Hi Gerhard - nice to see a nyala and in lovely light. Ed has given you great suggestions. It looks like the focus may have been on the tip of the nose as that seems to be sharpest. I can also see this as a portrait crop with just the head and ears and a little bit of space to either side.

I had to look up Mablingwe Nature Reserve because I had never heard of it before. I hope you'll post more images from there and more wildlife images in general. Don't hesitate to jump in and post comments on other threads. It helps create a sense of community and also is the best way to learn from each other. It doesn't have to be technical, just tell us what you like and don't like.

TFS,
Rachel

[Anette Mossbacher]

Hi Gerhard,

late to this one. Most has been said above. Haven't seen a nyala for quite a while. very nice

Have a great evening

Ciao

Anette

[Morkel Erasmus]

You received some good suggestions on crop and exposure/colour toning from Edward, Gerhard.
I agree that the nyala itself can use more sharpening...
Always good to see them up close and personal!