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The eyes are the reflection...of the inside, and can also have the outside reflected onto them. The past and the future bound together. These eyes are of my recent close encounter with a red fox. I often wonder just what do animals think, of the past, the present, and maybe of the future.
I used curves to lighten the original. Impression, van gogh and fractalius, with the original eyes retained. Then Impression, oil paint. Various opacities of the different layers and adjustments.
Wow -- gorgeous eyes and treatment! What would you think of adding a little more canvas on top, so the ears aren't almost touching the frame.
Thanks Diane. Easy to add canvas as this is a crop.
Beautiful High Key image accentuates the eyes.
(We have a red fox around this year. A real surprise as we are in a suburban area. Last one I saw was about 20 years ago. With my limited observation (the fox always pops in and out before I can reach my camera...) they are very clever, and can look right through you.)
Mitch, foxes are indeed clever. I watched one test the strength of my oldish dog. The fox ran just a short ways and turned to see if the dog chased. My dog decided barking was adequate and the fox decided my dog was more "bark than bite"!
Nancy, this is gorgeous!!! When I was looking at in on my iPhone it looked like the fox had one brown eye and one blue eye (his right eye). I agree with Diane about the top and I would be tempted to crop a little bit of the negative space from the bottom (just a sliver!). Foxes are very clever:S3:
Thanks Cheryl. Good advice on the cropping.
I like the look of the subtle bg and how it is very abstract and artistic. I might add just a hint of detail around the chin area if you have it.
Jackie, I totally agree with adding some detail around the chin area. I kept looking at it wondering what was missing. You put your finger right on it! Thanks.
I'm amazed at your ability to photograph a fox. I like the way the face is suggested by the ears, eyes, nose. How long a lens did you have to use?
Anita, This fox is a goofy guy/gal. He just starting coming close to the house and he does not seem to be afraid of people. We watched today as my 10-year old 75 lb dog chased the much, much smaller and lighter fox around the house. Suddenly the fox appeared at our backdoor, but not our dog, as expected! The dog was still down the hill looking for the fox. LOL! The fox wandered close to the house and when the dog reappeared, the fox merely looked at him. The dog was perplexed and decided to come into the house. It was all too funny! I can quietly sit outside and photograph this fox with a 70-200mm lens. I just cannot predict when the fox might show up and be willing to hang around :S3:. This particular fox has a black & white hind foot so he is easy to recognize. We have other foxes that hunt in our meadow and rocks but do not come close to the house. Add the Mule Deer that raid our bird feeders and peer into our dining room windows and it is better than Animal Planet!!
Sounds like fun!Quote:
Originally Posted by Nancy Bell
When I look at this, it's all about the eyes. Your processing of the rest of the image to give that impression was outstanding. I'd have had no idea that it started out as a red fox. Because my attention is on the eyes and because the ears blend so smoothly into the background, I wouldn't be inclined to add more canvas to the top. In fact, I'd crop close to the ear on the right side of the image and crop a good bit off the bottom -- all to give the eyes a bigger role by making them proportionately larger. To the same end, I'd lighten the nose and the inside of the ear on the right. However, it's quite incredible the way it is.
Thanks Dennis! Interesting that your take is to make it even more abstract. I'll play with that idea.
