Cheetah Rumble

[Morkel Erasmus]

I am back from a quick 7-day trip to the Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park in the Kalahari desert, South Africa. It was a veritable "Cheetah Fest" (even though we saw both lion and cheetah every day, the lions were generally being lazy as usual).

This has to be one of the prime spots in Africa to view and photograph cheetah. We saw 12 individuals in total, spread out through 8 sightings in 7 days (all self-driven with no guides and trackers). Among these sightings, we witnessed one kill from start to finish, one unsuccessful hunt, one family feasting on an already made kill.

On this particular morning we found a female named "Gertie" with her 2 cubs drinking at a waterhole. She was carefully watching some springbok further down the dry Auob riverbed (and would eventually stalk them and make a kill) while her youngsters were playing and exploring the area.

Techs:
Nikon D3s with Nikkor 500mm f4 VR-II + 1.4x TC @ 700mm
f8.0 @ 1/1000 SS @ ISO-720
Cropped slightly from top, bottom and LHS

[gail bisson]

I like everything about this image- the comp, the yellows and browns,the dust, and the similar curves in the backs and the interaction. I might add a hair mor canvas on the right and clone out the clump of elephant dung on the lower right. 10 out of 10 on this one,
Gail

[Rachel Hollander]

Morkel - This is fantastic - sharp where it counts, great sense of movement and action, nice colors and warmth. If this is any indication, it looks like a successful trip. Looking forward to seeing more.

:cheers::cheers:
TFS,
Rachel

[Grant Atkinson]

Super image Morkel, really like the way the two cats are positioned relative to one another. Also really like the pose of the left cheetah, with the straight back going on into that perfectly curved tail. Techs look good. Great work.
cheers
Grant

[Kiran Khanzode]

Great choice of frame to showcase from what appears to be some quick action, Morkel Bhai. I love that you shot this at f/8, keeping both of them in focus. Also the light is great, the body lines compliment each other and the eyes are visible so clearly. Comp is also well balanced, pano works nicely. I don't see any dung in the scene, I think they are rocks.

:cheers:

Kiran

[Marc Mol]

Loving the golden light and interplay here Morkel.:cheers:

[John Ippolito]

Morkel, lovely light, composition, and action captured in the dusty riverbed. I think I know this family. Well done indeed!!

[Steve Kaluski]

Cool shot Morkel, nicely balance.

TFS
Steve

[RakeshDhareshwar]

Amazing action shot !! The DOF is awesome !!

[Ken Watkins]

Morkel,

Marvelous action captire here, you certainly did better for Cheetah than we did:S3:

[Dumay de Boulle]

Welcome back mate..The interaction is great and I enjoy the dust. Very nice!

[Morkel Erasmus]

Thanks a lot for your kind feedback, folks. I was very happy to see this in the viewfinder :t3.
The elements in the FG are indeed rocks...

[Harshad Barve]

Great choice of frame to showcase from what appears to be some quick action, Morkel Bhai. I love that you shot this at f/8, keeping both of them in focus. Also the light is great, the body lines compliment each other and the eyes are visible so clearly. Comp is also well balanced, pano works nicely. I don't see any dung in the scene, I think they are rocks.

:cheers:

Kiran

Plus one here Bhai , excellent image
TFS

[Ken Watkins]

Can I ask, why elephant dung is considered objectionable, it is everywhere in Africa?