Mother of One

[Morkel Erasmus]

I'm off sick at home today, so thought I'd post an image to pass the time .
I am grateful to have had some opportunities to photograph the critically endangered Black Rhino in recent years. These images might be the only way my children's children get to see these magnificent creatures.

Taken somewhere between the Atlantic and Indian Oceans in Africa...the sun had already set.

Just as the sun dipped below the horizon, a cautious mother and her teeny calf emerged like ghosts from the surrounding bush, making their way gregariously towards the life-giving water. She stopped every now and again to survey the area, take in any new scents, and perk her ears towards unfamiliar sounds. She was keenly aware of her surroundings and of the potential danger that could lurk in the shadows...lions in this area have been known to have a go at rhino calves. The sad part is that we as humans hold the biggest threat to her and her young one's survival...


Eventually, they got to the water, and by that time it was too dark for decent photography - so I put the camera down and just enjoyed watching them drink peacefully as the stars started blinking around us...a special and rare moment in Africa!

Fun Fact: A black rhino calf will always walk behind its mother, and a white rhino calf will always walk in front of its mother...

Techs:
Nikon D3s
Nikkor 500mm f4 VR-II
f4.0 | 1/160 SS | ISO-2500
Exposure Bias +0.3

[Marc Mol]

Nice moment in soft evening light here Morkel, looks like you've added a vignette here which adds to the mood.
We can only hope the rate of slaughter slows down soon.

[Steve Kaluski]

Hi Morkel, a very nice image, like the comp, colour palette and just the right amount of detail & sharpening. Cool image!

Lets hope your children do not grow up having to see these in books & through your images.

TFS
Steve

[Gabriela Plesea]

Hello Morkel,

I am so glad your creative juices keep flowing, despite the fact that you are not feeling well

I find it very difficult to nit-pick on your images these days - this is yet another beautiful rhinoscape, if I may call it that. Shot in beautiful light and perfectly framed, it looks all so easy and effortless, but then you are one inspired photographer and these days you seem to seize the best opportunities and turn them into "perfect pictures" such as the above.

Some might suggest you crop from the bottom, I thought about it for a second but then I love the bush with everything in it, so I do not mind the dung bits - on the contrary, they contribute to the story. Congratulations Morkel, this is truly beautiful! And I do hope you feel better tomorrow, have a good rest tonight, gentle sleep...

Warmest regards,

[Loi Nguyen]

Hi Morkel, lovely image of a critically endangered species. The calf is the one that made this image SOOOO special. You handled the last bit of light very well here and the image rocks at 1/160s, F4, and ISO-2500. Well done. Loi

[Rachel Hollander]

Morkel - nicely handled low light. Great to see a calf and let's all hope they both evade the poachers. I too like the color palette and the framing. A beautiful image. Feel better.

TFS,
Rachel

[Andreas Liedmann]

Hi Morkel agree with the others cool image with great color and tone . Good to see a youngster with the mother .Very realistic from the technical POV in processing , good job.

TFS Andreas

[Richard Flack]

Beautiful image and setting Morkel!

[Andre Pretorius]

Stunning image Morkel!

Like the pose of both, light well handled.

Love the low slung back of baby

Nice to see Blacks in the wild.

Only nit I see is a dust bunny under your signature where the sky meets the trees.

Well done!

Andre

[Dvir Barkay]

awesome shot Morkel, love the shallow depth of field, really makes them pop out. If there was more light maybe one stop down would have helped make all of the baby in focus, or maybe its just the slow shutter speed and he moved? Also good colours, overall a nice one!

[Morkel Erasmus]

Thanks folks.
Dvir - it's due to f4 and perhaps movement as well. To get both in focus I'd have needed to go at least to f8 and the light just wasn't there...