Hippo smile

[Marc Mol]

4.46pm.

Up on the riverbank early, this guy had the attention of dozens of Oxpeckers and was in poor condition with open sores and bite marks all over, the consequence of many battles and a long hot dry season.
He still managed to crack a smile whilst in the process of gulping down as many sausage fruits as he could find.

D700 70-200VRII 1/80s f/7 ISO800 @200mm. almost F/F. Sth Luangwa NP- Zambia Nov 2011

C & C most welcome
Cheers
Marc

[Rachel Hollander]

Marc - Amazing detail and the comp works well. I like the oof impala in the bg too. Well done.

TFS,
Rachel

[Pieter de Waal]

Hi Marc, like the oxpeckers and the excellent detail on the Hippo which seems to highlight the ravages of the long dry season. The OOF Impala is a nice touch.

[Roman Kurywczak]

Hey Marc, I may have preferred this without the tree in the head area......but an outstanding portrait and the oxpeckers are a nice bonus.

[Ken Watkins]

Marc,

I like this old and battered Hippo and nice you can see the pink of his suntan cream:w3

[Steve Canuel]

Looks to be in somewhat rough condition but the eye seems bright and full of life. The smile helps as well. Nice texture and detail.

[v.p.nurdeen]

Hi Marc,
amazing details on the old-timer.
VPN

[Morkel Erasmus]

The detail/texture on him makes him seem almost "pre-historic" :Whoa!:
Lovely study, Marc. The tree coming out of his head is unfortunate and often not much we can do about that, while the OOF Impalas are a nice touch for me.

[Harshad Barve]

Super image with amazing details
TFS