Polar Bear

[Rachel Hollander]

This one of the female polar bear was taken between 7 and 8 in the morning as she wandered around perhaps searching for breakfast. She briefly paused and looked at us through a V formed in the polar ice. All that could be heard was the rapid fire of everyone's shutters on the boat. Unfortunately, I only got off a few frames before one of the other photographers accidently popped up in front of me. Fortunately I got this one before that happened.

Canon 5D3
300II plus 2xIII
1/2000
f5.6
ISO 800
Monopod from moving boat, cropped for comp, luminosity masks, levels, curves, selective burning, NR on bg, sharpened in CS6.

C&C welcome and appreciated. Thanks,

Rachel

[Sanjeev Aurangabadkar]

Superb image Rachel! I like the V formation in ice and the bear just making its appearance there. Nice HA and details. Great techs as usual.

[Don Railton]

Hi Rachel

I think this is pretty fantastic also, the legs and chest on these bears are so impressive, powerful. I wonder what it was thinking when it saw the boat...? "Not those photographer again", or "Hmm, Dinner maybe". Is the fur on the chest as sharp as you dare?

DON

[dankearl]

Very cool comp and nice exposure.
I think blurring the BG a bit behind the bear would look nice.

[Steve Kaluski]

Hi Rachel, it's always with hindsight, but I personally would like the subject to be a fraction more to the left, rather tan centrally placed. Good control of the exposure, but I think there are some 'masking/overlay' issues creeping in. I like the blue within the ice, but again all personal taste but I might be tempted in pulling it back a fraction. I might also look to getting a bit more detail from the ice on the RHS, it's there, just needs a bit more teasing out and I think it would help.

TFS
Steve

[Brendon Cremer]

Lovely image Rachel, great detail and well exposed. I really like how the bear is framed by the two piles of snow on either side. I too find the BG a little distracting and my first thought was to crop out the top band of snow to the top waters edge but in doing this you cut off the top of the right hand pile of snow which i quite like, so its a difficult one, will be interesting to see what others may suggest.

[Rachel Hollander]

Thanks everyone for the kind comments and suggestions. Brendon - your thinking was exactly the same as mine as to why I cropped where I did from the top.

Thanks again,
Rachel

[Cheryl Arena Molennor]

Rachel this is very cool. I really like how it is framed and that you got the framing ice sharp as well. very nice

[Rachel Hollander]

Thanks Cheryl and welcome back :wave:

[Morkel Erasmus]

Love the pose, setting (V) and the exposure here Rachel. Don't mind the placement of the bear here myself.
Lovely tones throughout. Is that a sharpening or masking halo along the edge of the RHS ice? :cheers:

[Rachel Hollander]

Thanks Morkel but it's neither. It's an uneven ridge in the ice:S3:

[Stu Bowie]

Hi Rachel, excellent detail on the polar bear, she just pops so well against the OOF BG. How are the size of those paws.