Dance of Death

[Morkel Erasmus]

Thought I'd better not post ANOTHER elephant monochrome
From an amazing sighting during the Great Migration safari I led last year - we literally pulled in closer to these lions on the bank of the Mara river for some close-up portraits when a lone wildebeest swam through the river and clambered up the embankment and straight into the lions. It did put up a valiant struggle but it was always going to be in vain. This is the adult lioness of the small pride clamping down on her prize.

Full frame top and bottom, cropped closer from the sides.
I could have shot with the D800 + 70-200 but opted to go for closer shots for facial expressions and more isolation from the surroundings...

Techs:
Nikon D3s
Nikkor 500mm f4 VR-II
f8.0 | 1/1250 SS | ISO-1400
Overcast dim light, around 10am

[Marc Mol]

Good eye contact and raised paw here from the female, wish we had the gnu as well, but we can't have everything
Not a fan of square crops (in nature) as you know Morkel, and wondered why you cut the sides? Good tonal range as well, although I do prefer the slightly wider colour version.

[Morkel Erasmus]

Thanks Marc, hard to explain - the conventional crop just wasn't "speaking to me"... ...the triangular shape of the animals called for a central placement, which called for a square crop in this case...

[Rachel Hollander]

Hi Morkel - I don't mind the crop because there's a symmetry to the image. It looks like she is saying "take the picture already I can't hold this pose much longer." Great eye contact with the lioness. I like the conversion and the juxtaposition of the light toned lion against the dark toned wilde. Well done.

TFS,
Rachel

[Andreas Liedmann]

Hi Morkel what a fantastic moment you captured , great job in the field . It would have been greater to have more room on top , but that`s life.
Like the symmetry and the crop .The contrast between the lion and the wildebeest works great.Agree with Rachel about the eye contact.

Very well done , all in all .

TFS Andreas

[Andre Pretorius]

Hi Morkel

Yip, the crop works for me and like Andreas said: would liked more space on top...

Nice DOF with f8 to get female's right leg in.

Love the eyes...

Well done

Andre

[Gabriela Plesea]

Eish, Morkel

I would have cropped it just like this, nothing more, nothing less! Nothing to detract the eye from the impact, the connection. The tail of the wildebeest barely touching the bottom of the frame - love it, you nailed this one, my friend!
Like your thinking here and processing, your images just get better and better, what's next?

Warmest regards,

[Mike Poole]

Great intensity in those eyes and pretty much perfect timing. The grasses covering the belly of the wildebeest bug me a little, but that really is nit picking. The crop works for me as well, any looser, and the drama could suffer

[Tobie Schalkwyk]

Perfect, Morkel! I'm not a fan of B&W wildlife photo's but this one works for me. The crop too. One only realizes how big these lions are when you see them next to an adult wildebeest or zebra. A special moment well captured!

[Nancy Bell]

All the elements in this image add up for a very strong visual impact! The light lion vs the dark wildebeest, the strong triangle composition (good cropping), the eye contact and legs of the lion, and the turned away head of the wildebeest tilted at the opposite angle of the lion (I would not really want to see the wildebeest eyes at this moment). A moment of decision & intent well captured and portrayed.

[Sid Garige]

Stunning image and excellent crop to go with. Excellent work Morkel. I dont see any thing that makes this better than what it is.

PS: I might have to come to south africa just to learn your b&W processing :)

[Steve Kaluski]

Hi Morkel, spot on timing, the pose look perfect. The conversion in tones works, but has the appearance of NIK, although I might ease of on any sharpening bottom right, the shapes with the legs catches my eye, mad I know, but perhaps not having such clean lines may help?

TFS
Steve

[Gabriela Plesea]

Hello again Morkel,

Just thought of another title for your image: "Death Tango" . Thought I'd mention it, since it has been on my mind all day.

I really like this, Morkel.

Warmest regards,

[Neil Burton]

I keep going from colour to mono and back again. Square works for sure, maybe I need the colour one in square too. :o But excellent timing.

[Tobie Schalkwyk]

I keep going from colour to mono and back again

That's what happens when you attempt to fiddle with perfection...

[Morkel Erasmus]

Thank you all so very much for your kind words and suggestions.

Tobie - Neil is referring to the colour version I posted on 500px here: http://500px.com/photo/66238885 (a bit different crop too)

[Ashleigh Scully]

I like the square crop. If you had more space above would you have left it in or cropped it like this? I am wondering if someone would think its too tight on the top. Its awesome like it is but sometimes the feedback I read is that the subjects need more room in the direction they are going in or looking into, like this one???

[Tobie Schalkwyk]

Tobie - Neil is referring to the colour version I posted on 500px here: http://500px.com/photo/66238885

I know Morkel, I know...