Who are you ?

[Andreas Liedmann]

Hi all ,
another frame from the recent Helgoland quick trip of a Grey Seal .
This guy was coming on shore and was not sure who is there on the beach besides his colleagues , as there has not been many of them in that corner of the beach they were very nervous and skittish compared to previous visits . For whatever reason !
So he was checking me out if i was a potential dangerous thing . Finally deciding to ignore my presence as long as i did not move , as soon as i moved slowly , almost crawling , they started moving towards the water .
As i behaved as always , there must have happened something in the past .


Canon EOS 1Dx
EF 500 IS L II + 1,4 TC
Handheld

F 8 ; Iso 3200 ; 1/1600 sec ; auto Iso , man exp

Processed with DPP 4 and PS CC ; cropped from all sides to 75 % of FF

Thanks for looking and commenting to my previous threads

Cheers Andreas

[Morkel Erasmus]

Hi Andreas. Just love the pose/attitude here, really makes it stand out from previous posts from this area.
It doesn't feel totally level - perhaps needs a hint of CW rotation?

[Andreas Liedmann]

Thanks Morkel , as this was taken at a place where the beach was relatively steep and the shooting angle was amplifying the effect of being not leveled . So i thought i leave it as taken with the cam !
Maybe you would see it the same way as i do , if you have been there sitting next to me in the sand . :bg3:
Anyway thanks for your comment , much appreciated .

Cheers Andreas

[Ian Wilson]

Nice exposure, DOF and details here Andreas. The composition does feel in need of a little rotation but I understand why it looks the way it does. Regards, Ian

[Steve Kaluski]

Hi Andreas, I think you mentioned many times about this beach and incline, nothing I think you could have done, but it does give the 'appearance' the seal is about to roll backwards into the sea, LOL. Like the soft pastel colours, might be tempted to clone that sand bottom right into the colour of the incoming tide???

TFS
Steve

[Andreas Liedmann]

Thanks Steve for your comment , i am always thinking should i level it or not .
The issues are coming from the location as it is much steeper in parts at hight tide with incoming water ( best way to photograph these guys as they are coming towards you and not go away with outgoing water level ). The better shooting angle you get at low tide as the sand is flat when the water is all out there.
It is not as wide as Donna , so you have limited options there and the number of seals is around 10 - 100 varying all the time .
As you can see if have shot maybe with an angle of 30 - 45 degrees and that keeps the seal rolling back into the sea ....... LOL.
But for me it is ok.

Cheers Andreas

[Steve Kaluski]

As we have said before Andreas, sometimes you 'need to be there' to understand the full issues of why you shot as you did. Perhaps moving more to the left, albeit that you would be in the sea might have helped???? You need a full wetsuit I think for next year. :bg3:

BTW, no issues with the current update apart from reinstalling some Third party bits and resetting the Colour settings, also if people use Save for Web then they have too use Legacy, as the others do not embed the correct profile!!! I assume you gone my no about the 1DX issue too, if not drop me a line?

[Rachel Hollander]

Hi Andreas - Love the more upright and inquisitive pose here. I also like it against the softer, pastel sea. My first impression was the same as the others regarding rotation but understand your point about it reflecting the steep conditions. But the impression I then get is that he is going to roll out of the frame on the left so it makes me want more space on the left than to the right of the seal. Just my thoughts.

TFS,
Rachel

[haseeb badar]

Hi Andreas -- a beautiful image ! that texture of the Seal looks fantastic , loved those colors as well ! already many things have been said and i would agree with what Rachel has to say abt some more space on the left ! TFS

[Gabriela Plesea]

Hello Andreas,

I really like this very much, and oh, it - brought - a - big - smile - on - my - face:bg3:

Given the incline of the beach, this chap is rolling back into the water, LOL! And those whiskers are gorgeous, so are the "brows"! Awesome sighting and so well captured, Andreas. Well processed too, techs 100% IMO.

Been thinking about the "levelling" issue... somehow I would not wish to rotate this... well...just think about it - the entire scene would lose its "humorous side". At the same time, if you decide to eliminate the bit of sand on the RHS you might just as well straighten it, if you know what I mean. I like it as is Andreas, and not because you are my German Boetie, LOL! Lovely colours, nice delicate sharpening...very careful work and rather faultless Andreas - hmmm...does it get any better than this?

So glad you are back and posting, very well done Boet, cannot wait for more:5

[Andreas Liedmann]

Thanks to all of you who commented to this image , much appreciate your points and feedback .
As a result of your thoughts i revisited the image and come up with this .....
But with all honesty i stick with my OP , cause i was there .... LOL.

CHeers Andreas

[Andre Pretorius]

Hi Andreas

The OP had more impact, IMHO!
Love the angle, BTW was your behind very cold from the wet sand?:t3 Quite a change from the Kalahari!
How big was the crop here, Andreas?
Glad to have Mr BE back!!!

[Andreas Liedmann]

Thanks Andre , yes my behind was getting weeeeeet and cold , cause i forgot my rain pants at home and i did expect better and dry weather .
Crop is about 60- 65 % of FF , why ?
I will try to be more prominent in the coming days , but still struggling to sit for a longer time in front of my machine !!

TFS Andreas

[Andre Pretorius]

Hi Andreas

I was wondering about F8--proximity, closer to subject to have a bigger DOF.
Have noticed you use F8 a lot, is it with TC?