Fractalius of an Old Gal

I am assuming this is a female snapping turtle and the same one that I have seen for many, many years at my families cottage on Horseshoe Lake near Parry Sound (home of Bobby Orr), Ontario. She is very hard to photograph often too wary and flees when you get to close. On this particular day she must have just emerged from the water and needed to warm up as she showed no inclination to flee what-so-ever.

Somehow I arrived at this effect with Fractalius using the Sketch-05 preset. I wish there was a little more definition around the tip of the mouth.

Look forward to comments.

Attachment 91457

Wow! Some claws on that monster. How big do you think she is? Love the soft colors and frac treatment. I think a more frontal light angle would have been good to reduce the shadows on the turtle, but it's still very nice. :S3:

Andrew, I really like the fract effect. The mud almost has a tortoise shell color to it which is neat. Christopher makes a good observation regarding the light, though I'm sure your shooting angle was very limited. Nicely done.:S3:

This looks great, Andrew! What an amazing creature. Really love how your treatment enhanced the texture & colors on the snapper. The glow in the eye is a nice touch. :S3:

I remember trying to pick up one of these, it was trying to cross a busy road. Never made that mistake again, its amazing how far back that head can reach.
I still have all my fingers....and a whole new respect, now I use a stick to help them across the road.
very nice capture Andrew, the claws, frac and colors rock..well done

Andrew,

I love everything about this image... composition, color, fractalius effect, the detail in the eye as well as the overall lighting. The shadows create depth and drama. Beautiful.

Richard

Thanks a bunch folks for the comments. I appreciate them very much!:S3:

Nice composition, Andrew. I like the fract effect on the Turtle. This does look big. I was reading few days ago about a giant turtle considered legendary and sacred rescued in Vietnam. It weighs 440 lbs and most likely 80-100 years old. Any idea how big this one is?

Thanks Indranil, we've had the family cottage for about 30 years now so I would guess this turtle to be perhaps around 40 or so years old and probably about 35-50 pounds. Horseshoe Lake is a large lake with my many bays and it seems that each of the quieter bays have their own resident large snapper.

Andrew, I love the effect you've gotten with this gorgeous creature. It's amazing how long they survive.
The colors and fract effect on the water and shell are beautiful.:S3:

Much thanks Cheryl!