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Thread: Power of Presence

  1. #1
    Lifetime Member Andre Pretorius's Avatar
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    Default Power of Presence

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    Yet another Male Lion (for the lack of mice….)

    It was after a violent thunder storm that I have been watching for about an hour on a hot February afternoon in Northern Kalahari. After we had rebuild our demolished camp we set out to get a subject to capture the golden afternoon light against the still heavy skies.
    He graced us with his presence….

    Techs:
    Nikon D3S with Nikon 600f4
    ISO 1000
    1/1250@ 7,1
    FF
    No time to put on the 300F2.8, in retrospect it would have been perfect…..

    LR adjustments, sharpen.
    In CS6 various adj layers, added bit of canvass of top and in front, straighten image.

    C&C welcome
    Regards

    Andre.

    www.gappimages.com

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    POWERFUL shot... The exposure is PERFECT for me, love the DOF and the color palettes adds a great depth in this image.

  3. Thanks Andre Pretorius thanked for this post
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    What's wrong with mice. I bet you this guy would flinch if one jumped on him suddenly - to put it mildly! I see, tutoring me on extending canvas has inspired you to revisit old images. Great PP work and I still enjoy this a lot.

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    Forum Participant edwardselfe's Avatar
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    Great detail, lighting etc. There's something just a little clinical about it to me......too clean and smooth in the grasses in front and the perfectly smooth sky. It may be as it was but it's a bit too perfect for me! I know that sounds an odd thing to say. I'd like a bit more detail in the grass and perhaps to tone it down a little. As you say, would have been nice to have a bit more space around with the 300f2.8 but there's not always time!
    Good details on the lion itself.
    Ed

  6. #5
    Lifetime Member Andre Pretorius's Avatar
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    Thank you Butch, Carl and Edward for comments.

    Edward, the grasses was not touched in PP. Have you seen the light after a thunder storm, it is golden with the contrasting deep blue sky. It is the time when you frantically look for a subject to photograph in the perfect light.
    When you expose correctly on your subject which in this case was reflecting less light back to the sensor than the white grasses, they(grass) will be over exposed. I did not tone the grass down, or want any detail in the grass to distract from the subject.
    I wanted to crop much more from bottom, but the "virtual feet" prevented me from doing so.
    I have been called clinical before, by fellow photographers and patients!

    Regards

    Andre
    Regards

    Andre.

    www.gappimages.com

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    Lifetime Member Rachel Hollander's Avatar
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    Hi Andre - gorgeous male in beautiful light. It's always fun to see how you and Gabriela sometimes present the same subjects differently. Only a very small point from me. I wonder if you included the mane by the middle of the far side of the face in your sharpening. If not, I would. Sharpness just drops off a little too much for me at f7.1.

    TFS,
    Rachel

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    Forum Participant edwardselfe's Avatar
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    Yup understood the exposure that you had and I've seen that light here too. It's stunning and so short lived!!
    In which case I would just like a bit more space to the sides, but I understand the limitations you have.
    Ed

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    Wonderful image! Great light and clean FG & BG. Well done.

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    BPN Member Andreas Liedmann's Avatar
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    Hi Andre,
    just want to say congrats to this lovely lion shot.A bit more space with the 300 would have been better , but you made the most out of it.

    ;.

    TFS Andreas

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    BPN Viewer Charles Glatzer's Avatar
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    Very Nice

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    BPN Member Morkel Erasmus's Avatar
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    Cracker! Love the light, colours and DOF here Andre...

    This sighting is still on my Kgalagadi wishlist...
    I like this view with the 600 very much, but would also have loved a 70-200 type of shot with the lion small in the frame and the sky BIG - hindsight is an exact science as they say!
    Morkel Erasmus

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    Publisher Arthur Morris's Avatar
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    Regal and foreboding. The only thing that bugs me is the dark area in front of the face. It is easy to lose that if you would like to. Back in a second...
    BIRDS AS ART Blog: great info and lessons, lots of images with our legendary BAA educational Captions; we will not sell you junk. 30+ years of long lens experience/e-mail with gear questions.

    BIRDS AS ART Online Store: we will not sell you junk. 35 years of long lens experience. Please e-mail with gear questions.

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  14. #13
    Publisher Arthur Morris's Avatar
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    Here is a wider, softer version with more detail in the grass and canvas added above and in front.... And without the dark area by the head.
    BIRDS AS ART Blog: great info and lessons, lots of images with our legendary BAA educational Captions; we will not sell you junk. 30+ years of long lens experience/e-mail with gear questions.

    BIRDS AS ART Online Store: we will not sell you junk. 35 years of long lens experience. Please e-mail with gear questions.

    Check out the new SONY e-Guide and videos that I did with Patrick Sparkman here. Ten percent discount for BPN members,

    E-mail me at samandmayasgrandpa@att.net.










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    Super capture Andre! Like Arthur's idea of more detail in the grass, but won't lift the exposure on the lion as Arthur did...

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    Forum Participant edwardselfe's Avatar
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    Yes, prefer details of grass in rp, but lion and sky from op. Looks less clinical!!!! Joking. Adding canvas of course is a personal choice. Ed
    Ed

  17. #16
    Lifetime Member Andre Pretorius's Avatar
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    Thank you Rachel for the comment; yes we have different takes, and slightly different angles. She has more "feel"for the moment and the PP, I try to portray it as it was…(clinical?)

    Thank you for understanding, Ed.

    Thank you Sanjeev!

    Appreciated, Charles!

    Andreas and Morkel--Yeah I know- hindsight!!! You shoot with what you have there and then, trying to change will cost you the few seconds you have.. Maybe being a great photographer means to anticipate the moment with the right lens- I still have a LONG
    way to go!

    Thank you Artie for taking time to do RP, appreciate it, the BG line does look much smoother and less distracting now!

    Thanks Ed!
    Regards

    Andre.

    www.gappimages.com

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