Springbok lamb

[Mark Wiseman]

Unfortunately it was a bit of springbok lamb to the slaughter for all those Springbok rugby supporters this morning in the World cup. As Morkel so rightly mentioned, it is so difficult not to take photo's in the Kalahari. I came across this new born springbok as it's mother was moving away from the actual birthing process. It was struggling to its feet and after about 10 minutes was able to stand. The mother was offering support and was also trying to lick the umbilical chord. It was then that I was able to take this image. I like the interaction between the newly born springbok and it's mother, the movement of the sand at the base of the right foot of the springbok female adds a sense of movement to the image.
Camera details:
Canon EOS 1Ds MkII
EF 500mm f4 LUIS
Aperture f4
Shutter speed 1/3200
ISO 200
Image processed in ACR and CS5.
Image taken at 13h33, the hottest part of the day.
Any comments and solutions welcome.

[Brendan Dozier]

Great unique, interaction capture, Mark! Excellent IQ and details, and you managed the bright light very well. Wishing for just a bit more room all around if you have it. Nice work!

[Ofer Levy]

Beautiful behaviour shot full of action and drama! Would like to see a bit more room at the top and wonder why you chose such open aperture with so much available light? For me this is the kind of wildlife images I would like to see. Straight forward beautiful and moving imaging capturing nature as it is. Not trying to be "clever", "unique", "out of the box", "artistic" and all this nonsense. Very well done!!:cheers:

[Cheryl Arena Molennor]

Great interaction and a neat moment for you to see.

[Marc Mol]

Great behavioural image here Mark, well captured with the lighting well handled. Would wish for a tad more room above.



Unfortunately it was a bit of springbok lamb to the slaughter for all those Springbok rugby supporters this morning in the World cup.

Go you Wallabies!!
.....best not mention England's performance Mark.:t3

[Ken Watkins]

Straight forward beautiful and moving imaging capturing nature as it is. Not trying to be "clever", "unique", "out of the box", "artistic" and all this nonsense. Very well done!!:cheers:

I could not disagree with this comment in any way:cheers::cheers:

[Steve Kaluski]

Hi Mark, good detail and clarity and I like the pose and intimate content.

Just needs a little more room to let the subject breathe.

TFS
Steve

[RakeshDhareshwar]

Agree with some space around , but other than that , an image I would love to have captured !!!! Just an amazing moment !!!

[Rachel Hollander]

Beautiful image. I agree on more space around.

TFS,
Rachel

[Craig Kerr]

Wonderful interaction, the bond between mother and calf is beautifully portrait... Nice One

[Pieter de Waal]

Beautiful moment captured Mark, nice detail and light conditions well handled. I like the composition as it focuses attention on bonding interaction and the vulnerability of the lamb.

[Morkel Erasmus]

Such a tender moment here Mark, and this shows that decent results can be obtained at midday in the Kgalagadi (heck, my 'lone wildebeest' shot was taken around noon :w3).
I agree with the overwhelming call for more space all around - the question is, is this full frame?? :Whoa!:

[Mark Wiseman]

Hi all,
Thank you for all your comments, they are all appreciated. I also would have liked more space all around, especially on the top, however there was no cropping on this image as it was full frame.
It was taken with a 500mm f4 lens and now I would most likely take this image again with the D3s and the 200-400f4 combo. All I can say is that when driving a landcruiser and taking photo's simultaneously, choice can be limited at times.
Best wishes and thanks for all the comments.

[Ken Watkins]

All I can say is that when driving a landcruiser and taking photo's simultaneously, choice can be limited at times.


Mark,

I could not disagree with this comment, but driving yourself and finding the sighting yourself is such a pleasure:S3:

[Dumay de Boulle]

Very nice Mark...Great moment and the presentation is great!

[DanWalters]

Very nice. Really like the interaction. Like the fact you can see some of the umbilical cord, helps show the viewer what is going on.

[Harshad Barve]

Big congrats on this top class image :cheers:
TFS

[Steve Canuel]

Hi Mark,
Cute subject and I like the comp with the nice curving line of the mum's neck leading right to the fawn. Well done.