LaL Kaan and Blue River !

[haseeb badar]

Hello everyone. Thank you for your comments and suggestions to my previous post , as always , much appreciated.

This is Lal Kaan ( Lal=Red, Kaan=Ear ), i.e Red Ear from Corbett. We sighted him roaming near the ram ganga river on a late afternoon. Asiatic elephants are pretty shy when compared to its African cousins. The shyness is now in their nature because of excessive conflicts with humans due to ever decreasing forest cover. This particular individual was no different but with only single vehicle in the vicinity and proper respect offered, this guy was at ease and spent ample time around the area , drinking and bathing.

DPP 4.12, PSCC 2020, WB, Curves, selective colour, hue/sat/vib, cropped a bit from top, lhs and bottom, sharpened the subject.

Canon 1DX MK II, Canon 200-400 f4 IS II @ 200mm, Bean Bag.

ss 1/2500, f/7.1, iso 640.

Your comments and suggestions of any nature are appreciated.

Haseeb.

[Steve Kaluski]

Hi Haseeb, never seen an image like this where an elephant is in such a fantastic, yet totally different setting to what we normally see. Yes. of course we have all seen images in/on Nat Geo with elephants on beaches, or in other arenas, but not this, the habitat is almost like Katmai and so seeing a Grizzly would not be out of context. This for me is more 'small in frame' and where not only do you see the subject, but also the landscape too., but you could go wider... My only thought would be to give the image say CW rotation, say +2?

Giving the subject the correct respect delivered dividends, well done. :cheers:

TFS
Steve

[Andreas Liedmann]

Hi Haseeb .... lovely and very cool frame of this Asian elephant !!!
Glad you had the opportunity to shoot frames like this one .
Like it as presented , but see options in terms of cropping .... might be good to see the original .
Nice colors , good tonal range and very nice details in the subject. For " perfection " you might consider removing the stick on the beach right in front of the elephant .

Very nice image and good to see the Asian Elephant

TFS Andreas

[Sanjeev Aurangabadkar]

Spectacular image Haseeb. Love the setting and the placement of the elephant. Super colors and details. Great shot!

[Gabriela Plesea]

May I add my congratulations as well Haseeb, as I am also enjoying this a great deal!

Good thinking in the field, nice techs, well composed ( albeit it does need a tad of CW rotation:t3). Ele stands out beautifully against the landscape. Beautiful colours and tones and detail on the subject is great.
Superb capture, if this was mine I'd print it:cheers:

Kind regards,

[Bretoteanu Dan]

Beautiful wildscape Haseeb, I like the textures on its skin created by the water and the BG, it tells the story of the elephants environment. I agree with Steve its an unusual setting (in a good way), but it makes your picture stand out. I also agree about the straightening.

[John Mack]

Most of the elephant photos i have seen on here are not in settings like this. That is why i enjoy viewing this one.

[haseeb badar]

Thank you everyone, really appreciate your suggestions and kind words of appreciation .

@ Steve and Gabriela — will look into that CW rotation , though I straightened it a bit during PP.

@ Andreas — haven’t noticed that stick before but since you have pointed it out , the stick is catching my eye eversince. It should go.

[Jonathan Ashton]

Beautiful shot I love it. The only thing that bothers me is the line of shingle against the grass it doesn't look horizontal.