I Can Curl My Tongue, Can You?

[Rachel Hollander]

Actually I can't but the Vomba Young Male Leopard can. Taken at Londolozi in the Sabi Sand Game Reserve, South Africa. We spent a morning traveling with this young leopard as he surveyed the area. He still does not have his own territory and he followed his father for a while that morning. He finally came to a stop on top of a termite mound to observe the surrounds and scout for breakfast. Ironically, as we pulled away we discovered that there was a large warthog inside the termite mound.


Canon 5D3
300 II plus 2x III
1/1000
f6.3
ISO 800
Beanbag from safari vehicle, levels, curves, selective color adjustments, sharpened in CCPS.

C&C welcome and appreciated. Thanks,

Rachel


[Tobie Schalkwyk]

Beautiful, Rachel! Lovely complementing colors all over, sharp, even cute! Those eyes are so beautiful! Nice one, well done! :5

[Mark Needham]

Lovely IQ, detail, colors, and pose captured here, Rachel. I can't wait to get back to Sabi next August (counting down the days). Is this FF or might you have some more room on the right side for the cat to "look into?"

[Anette Mossbacher]

Hi Rachel,

indeed a great portrait of this leopard. I as well try to find more space on the right hand side. For me the look is cut off somehow, but this is just me and you know that I love animals to breath in images :w3

Have a great start into the day. Here sun is up

Ciao
Anette

[Rachel Hollander]

Thanks Tobie, Mark and Anette. This is full frame.

Thanks again,
Rachel

[Marc Mol]

It's that curled tongue that takes this above a normal leopard portrait Reachel, with the bonus of good techs and detail that completes the image.
TFS

[Gabriela Plesea]

Dearest Rachel,

This is indeed beautiful. I could tell it was full frame because this is not really your style of cropping, you like to give lots more space and here you had no choice but to leave it "as is":w3, am I right? Yet it works for me, if this was mine (oh, I wish!) I would perhaps take a sliver off the left, to create the illusion that there's more on the right. But I am sure you tried various options and you settled for what worked best.

Great detail and well exposed, sharp where needed and the colours are superb. I imagine Mr Detail would perhaps say he wished for more detail in the black area at the mouth of the leopard, have you thought of trying a lumo layer? I am really nit-picking now, this is as close to perfect as it can get for me, overall a stunning portrait most of us would love to have in our collection. Congratulations dearest Rachel!!!

Warmest regards,

[Andre Pretorius]

Hi Rachel

The POV is very effective here.

Agree with Gabriela regarding crop and Lumo layer (our action LIGHTENS) on blacks.

Love that tongue, was he trying to whistle to his dad for help with the warthog?:t3

Decided to try what I had in mind, very rough…..

WDYT?

[Rachel Hollander]

Thanks Marc, Gabriela and Andre, much appreciated. Gabriela and Andre - In every image I have of this leopard, and I have many, the area next to the mouth is coal black. You can see there is detail in the other blacks. Look at the lip next to it. I can try what I call a reverse lumo set to screen but I don't think it will help, it hasn't on other images of him. Thanks for the suggestion though.

Rachel

[Rachel Hollander]

Andre - You must have edited your post and posted the rp while I was responding. It's a possibility but I would prefer to have the entire head/neck in and not cut on the left. I may play around to see if a 4x5 works but if not I am ok with the op. I try to stick to traditional print formats for crops these days.

Thanks for the rp,
Rachel

[Carl Walker]

There is some unusual leopard behaviour happening in that place but it happens. Great detailed portrait Rachel. I also agree with the black area mentioned in terms of what you mentioned. Are you sure he is not trying to whistle:t3

[Morkel Erasmus]

Lovely details in this portrait, Rachel. POV isn't bad either...
I agree the tongue makes it, and prefer the OP framing/space to the RP.

[Rachel Hollander]

Thanks Carl and Morkel, much appreciated.

[Andreas Liedmann]

Hi Rachel funny impression with the tongue making a "whistle.
Nice portrait with great detail and colors .Crop works as per OP .
Agree with those who referred to the heavy blacks , particularly in the ears , gums and nose .

TFS Andreas