Sunset Dustbath

[Ken Watkins]

Young Elephant dusting after a sunset paddle, Okaukuejo Waterhole, Etosha National Park, Namibia, 1st September 2008

EOS 1D MkIIn

28-300mm @ 130mm

F6.3, 1/200, ISO400

[D. Robert Franz]

Love the action here, nice soft lighting.. I think you could loose the sky and the FG rock in the center.. Etosha is very high on my list of places to get to..

[Stu Bowie]

Ken, well timed to capture the lump of dust flying out the trunk. I like the soft light too, and good detail captured on the youngster.

[Sabyasachi Patra]

Ken,
I like the image. You have managed to capture the entire arc formed by the dust. I always feel that is much better. There have been times when I have captured elephant dust bathing and the dust arc cut off due to long focal length. I have always felt an incomplete feeling. The texture in the elephant has come out well. Thanks for sharing.

Cheers,
Sabyasachi

[Austin Thomas]

Very nice Ken,

I love the way the light has caught the dust above the body.

tfs

Austin

[Todd Frost]

Nice image Ken, great timing and light. I like Dale's idea of eliminating the center fg rock. Sky really does not add much except you would not have entire dust arc. Detail looks good. TFS
Todd

[Dennis "Curly" Buchner]

great action shot

[Marc Mol]

Ken,
I like the image. You have managed to capture the entire arc formed by the dust. I always feel that is much better.

Agree with Saby here, getting the full arc is an advantage and nicely captured Ken in good light, well done.
TFS

[Harshad Barve]

Everything already said and I agreed with Dale here , Congrats on beautiful image
TFS

[Ken Watkins]

Thanks to everybody for your comments, it is a pity that I could get in a position to avoid the sky in the dust arc. the rock in the middle foreground does not worry me.

Thanks to Nate for reminding me to look at my Etosha stuff again.

D Robert Franz,

If you go to Etosha stay inside the park, mising out on a night at Okaukuejo waterhole would be a sin!

[Paul Taylor]

Love the arc, the mass of dust about to make impact, and the matching positions of the trunk and tale. That the light is lovely goes without saying. Unusual and very successful shot.

[Alfred Forns]

Great feel for this one Ken !!! Think you would have enough of the arc with the cropping, either way like it a lot !!!

[Callie de Wet]

The ambiance and the light does it here. and the arc, as mentioned. I immediately checked the possibility of loosing the sky, but then the arc gets cut. A lovely image, Ken!

[Myer Bornstein]

ditto to the comments

[Morkel Erasmus]

has to be one of the best dusting images I've seen Ken. love that dust-puff rocketing towards the back :)
I also still need to see this wonderful place.

agree on cropping tighter...

[Steve Canuel]

Nice timing on the dust arc Ken. I like the comp as is, trees in the BG add to the late day feel.