Leopard and Cub

[gail bisson]

Canon 1 DX
70-200mm with 1.4X at 280 mm
ISO 800 F 7.1
SS 1/2000
PP: small crop, usual sliders in LR 4 ( clarity to +15, vibrance +15, saturation +4) cloned out distracting branch in BG, levels, NR, decreased magenta cast on log, increased the blacks in the neutrals in selective coloring, USM to JPEG
I don't post very often on wildlife, as there isn't much here in Nova Scotia!
A trip to Botswana gives me a chance to shoot something else besides birds.
I love the paw on top of paw and the lines created by the cub in this shot.
Unfortunately had cloudy skies on most days during this recent trip to Botswana :-( No magic light to be had.
Comments and critiques always appreciated and learned from with thanks,
Gail

[Rachel Hollander]

Hi Gail - Always nice to have you posting in Wildlife. Great to find the leopards out in the open and the interaction between the 2. It feels a little warm for the conditions you describe. I dropped the reds in PS and thought it looked better but you were there. Hope to see more from your trip.

TFS,
Rachel

[Sanjeev Aurangabadkar]

Gail, this is really nice. I like the interaction of the leopards. The soft light has allowed uniform exposure, nice details and colours. Well done. Hope to see more from you in the Wildlife forum.

[Mark Needham]

Hi Gail -- Lovely image and interaction. Always nice to get leopards out in the open like this. Despite the cloudy days, looks like you had a fantastic trip. Rachel's suggestion is a good one. I might also try lightening the eyes just a tad.

[Andreas Liedmann]

Hi Gail , would log ego see a Leopard that much in the open like here , never saw that in real life .
Nice comp and well exposed with a nice tonality . Colors do look bit warm for overcast sky .

I took the image into ACR , took a color reading in LLC branch as being neutral , and reduced (HSL) the yellows by -5 and the oranges by -15 .

WDYT ? TFS Andreas

[gail bisson]

Thank you Andreas and Rachel and Sanjeev,
I like the repost Andreas. Ironically, this is what my first version looked like but when I posted it to another forum several people said I should warm it up a bit! I will rework the OP as I feel the colors are truer to life in your repost Andreas,
Gail

[Marc Mol]

I like the framing this dead tree gives here Gail, with this pair interacting nicely, Andreas RP is probably close to the mark for the cloudy conditions.
It's always nice to see any leopard out in the uncluttered open.:w3

TFS

[Morkel Erasmus]

Very nice moment and setting, Gail. Great to have you posting here again...!
I think the best colour temperature might be somewhere between your OP and Andreas' version?
Pity about that sky, but the overcast conditions provided nice even lighting. Looking forward to more!

[Jonathan Ashton]

A really attractive shot full of interest. I am always surprised to see so many different suggestions regarding colours and lighting etc, I find it stimulating. The first shots looks fine to me but the one by Andreas looks equally fine, the way the initial conversion is made is critical, this is why I keep playing with DPP and ACR, I often find myself going down a standardised path but when I see two different versions it gets me thinking....... and very often I am unsure which is best - one may be for presentational purposes but another may be nearer the truth!