Leopard - in colour

[Steve Kaluski]

Sorry for the lateness in posting, it been a few very long days as a few know, starting a new project again, but that's Wildlife.

OK, so here is the 'pushed' colour version. Andreas I think you can see the effect clearer now . As I said, IMHO it would not have got passed the second round of editing, but it did and because of some issues I thought for once I would play with the image. The B/W was pushed even more tonally, and hid some of the pitfalls in the colour IMHO.

'Why I would have been binned this - the branch is now too evident, the blade of grass behind the nose (easy fix)/light area under the chin, the two 'dark' elements on the LHS too dominant, overall too tight and although the branch in the top RHC was 'blurry' due to DoF, this was enhanced even more and I really do not like that area. Highlights could be toned back, but I think it would have lost the strong, saturated light coming through the glade originally. Perhaps there is some mileage in posting a 'non ideal' image at times?

Techs posted in the previous B/W image.

Cheers
Steve

[Gabriela Plesea]

[QUOTE=Steve Kaluski;987650]

'Why I would have been binned this - the branch is now too evident, the blade of grass behind the nose (easy fix)/light area under the chin, the two 'dark' elements on the LHS too dominant, overall too tight and although the branch in the top RHC was 'blurry' due to DoF, this was enhanced even more and I really do not like that area. Highlights could be toned back, but I think it would have lost the strong, saturated light coming through the glade originally. Perhaps there is some mileage in posting a 'non ideal' image at times?

Yes Steve, sometimes there is mileage in posting something "non ideal", and especially when the image represents a choice where certain features can be given prominence. What beautiful light here, barely touching the leopard-this is what I like about this photograph the most - the strip of bright light, as well as the rich and intense environment. All this beauty was certainly less expressed in the B/W conversion, so your new post - to me - beats by far the previous version

Warmest regards,

[Loi Nguyen]

Hi Steve, just got back from 10 day trip in Botswana and the only time I saw a leopard (and her month-old cub) was on a night drive, I was jealous with envy that you had time to spend with this leopard and her cubs. Yes, i can see now the limitation of the fixed 500mm. It's not always possible to move without disturbing the subjects. The colors are lovely here even with the leopard in the shade, which I found often problematic for us photographers, but that was exactly what the animals prefer while resting. Loi

[Rachel Hollander]

Hi Steve - I prefer the toned version and agree with your self-critique and assessment here. She is a beautiful leopard though.

TFS,
Rachel

[Mike Poole]

I have to admit to a preferance for the previous version as well. As much as the lepoard itself looks beautiful, I just can't get a way from the branch in the background that almost looks like an extra leg. The B&W version masked it to a degree. Still better than anything I've shot though!

[Morkel Erasmus]

Steve, I'm just less caught up with so-called disturbing elements in the BG than others - don't know if my standards are low, but I would never bin this because of the branch, or the blade of grass, or the lighter area under the chin. Perhaps it's because my own leopard portfolio is so thin haha .

I do prefer the monochrome version. The big thing that would make this a "bin shot" for me is just how tight it is at the bottom (though I could live with that) and the fact that I would have liked a wee bit more head-turn...

[Andreas Liedmann]

Hi Steve, as far as i can say i have never seen a Leopard that close and relaxed in the wild, so i would not bin this if this was mine.
I prefer the mono version , looks more interesting from aesthetic POV. But i love the colors and the beam of light. THe fifth leg could be eliminated or at least made less visible.Like wise the grass blade in front of the snout.
The cat looks great in tones and color , but the blurring is not my cup.

TFS Andreas

[Andre Pretorius]

Hi Steve

The biggest crit I had with the previous version was the area under the chin-less obvious in colour version, which I prefer.

Agree with space @ bottom.

The busy BG with "leg" is natural, does not bother. DOF should take care of that to an extent.

Andre