Black-backed Jackal

[Richard Flack]

Location: Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park
Date taken: 29 April 2013
Photo details:
Canon EOS 7D
100-400mm
ISO 640
Shutter speed 1/1250
F-stop 5.6
Exposure bias 0

[Morkel Erasmus]

Welcome here Richard! I am sure both of you will benefit from the excellent critique that BPN is known for.
I like the central placement here.

Love this reflection shot. I am not viewing on the ideal monitor at the moment, so let's see what others chime in with. I know you are big on birds so perhaps check out the avian galleries as well...

[Rachel Hollander]

Hi Richard - Welcome to BPN and the Wildlife Forum. The strong reflection, eye contact and drinking pose all combine for a very nice first image. It looks like there may be a little noise so I'm not sure if the RAW was slightly underexposed and you brought it up or if it was introduced somewhere else in the pp. Let us know what pp program(s) you use. Looking forward to seeing more of your images. Don't be shy about jumping in and offering your comments to others' images. TFS, Rachel

[Richard Flack]

Thanks so much Morkel and Rachel. I appreciate you taking the time. Rachel, I got into photography about two years ago because of a passion for birds. And have only recently started to focus on the photography side of things... so am only now starting to learn the ropes (especially when it comes to post processing). I use photoshop (very basic) and to be honest this photograph was taken in jpeg (not RAW) and I did little post processing apart from increasing the vibrance. I have a long way to go but at least I am starting somewhere :). Thanks again and have an awesome day.

[Richard Flack]

Morkel, on a different note, how can I become a member without having to sign up for paypal? Is there a way to pay via credit card? Thanks in advance.

[Morkel Erasmus]

Richard, using PayPal also implies using a credit card. I use it and it works well, even from SA (you link your credit card details to your profile, securely). The only issue with PayPal in SA is getting money OUT (payment to you).
It's safe and secure. If you still have a problem I will have the site owners get in touch with you regarding other options...

[Anette Mossbacher]

Welcome Richard, this is a great image with super reflection.
I agree with Rachel on the noise, but that does not disturb me much.

Have a great eve

Ciao
Anette

[Richard Flack]

Thanks so much Anette!

[Girish Prahalad]

lovely light & details on this one. like the comp & the vary look of the jackal.

[Richard Flack]

Thanks so much Girish!

[Morkel Erasmus]

I see you got sorted Welcome to BPN proper, Richard!
Happy sharing and learning...

[Diane Miller]

Hi Richard,

What a beautiful animal and a great pose. The reflection is fantastic! Hope to see more from you.

Just a couple of thoughts -- I'd touch out the spots in the water near the bottom (hope they're not on your sensor!), and some could be cropped from the base, or else the bottom edge burned a little with a soft gradient. The water is the lightest, least "solid" part of the image and either of those tweaks would provide more of a base for the image to rest on.

JPEG did a good job here, but I hope when you increased Vibrance you did so non-destructively, with an adjustment layer, which lets you modify adjustments later on a layered master file, if desired. An alternative is processing in Lightroom, which is non-destructive and also a great organizer. It is more powerful on RAW images but still can do a lot for a well-exposed JPEG.