I never tire of watching those huge beasts that walk around in the Kalahari as if they own the place. And I have not found a name for this individual yet for I did not spend enough time in his company. He does look a lot like Charlie Ash of Rooiputs yet he hasn't got the same silent strength. He might be his brother, but I could be mistaken.
This brief encounter brought about a desire in me to learn more about this male lion and his female (will share some images of the two together, soon). I kept wondering where they were going and whether there were cubs hidden somewhere. The couple drank one early morning at the Kij Kij water hole and then crossed the road after roaring in tandem right in front of us, a spectacle hard to forget.
To me nothing has more exotic appeal than this powerful beast, I thrive on those sightings. My lust for the Kalahari is fuelled by the desire to see the creatures in it and my hopes were fulfilled to a great extent during our recent trip - not always the best photographic opportunities but some intense moments that will not fade from my memory for a very long time. This is but one example.
very nice image of this boy, nice details indeed but for me there is a bit pop missing. Sorry this must be just me and IMHO.
F/9 yeah way to go !!!
I 've been told to have a look here lololol. I do not have much time right now, so sorry. Very busy collecting with a side job pocket money to finance my trips next year I want to do.
Sooooo, are there also some images on your "hard drive roll" with more room to breath for the animal and different animals?
Wish you a great weekend, I am now on my way to down under in my studio to get my next job done!!! Nop no animals there
HI Gabriela - I'm glad you finally got sorted out and could start processing images. A very nice portrait with excellent details and sharpness. The more square comp works but I could also see a version with a bit more room above, below and left if you have it. Now get cracking and post some more from your recent trip.
Anette, I certainly could give it more 'pop', I did consider it at some stage but instead decided to go for a more realistic look, for a change. Lots more to come and I hope to surprise you with something different over the next few weeks! Meanwhile, kindly take a look in "Introductions, Interviews, Family Friends and Fun"...
Rachel - this is almost full frame, therefore the crop. Was missing just a tad at the top so I decided to go closer. More images to come, but I will be careful not to post lion after lion, LOL!
Hope you all have a happy weekend, thank you so much for your comments!
Hi dear Gabriela , simply stunning ......... good work in the field and in the darkroom .Remember exactly the time and location was quite a good encounter .
Love the color/tone presentation, well very close to natural .
I experienced your wording personally in the field when you talked about your Kalahari lions , it is like you type here , very natural
Thanks for sharing your view to them and this image .
Lovely image, Gabriela. Great natural processing and tones. Nice detail as well. Looks as though this big boy had recently eaten / made a kill, as that looks like some blood on his mane under his chin? If I was to do anything here, it would be to lift a bit of the shadow on the closest eye, as the dark sharp line is a bit distracting. I also detect a tiny bit of a purple / magenta color cast in the blacks of the lips / gums (common with all cameras and an easy fix). These are very minor issues on a superb portrait; well done!
Thank you all so much for your feedback, I thought I'd show you another version of this lion image.
Mark, I checked, could not find much colour cast to remove, I already removed some magenta in the lower lip and whatever blue/cyan there was. I agree the colour on the lip leans slightly towards magenta but if I remove everything 100% it would turn grey and dull, I wanted to retain a tad of pink without giving the impression of a colour cast, if you know what I mean.
Andreas, very subtle, ha ha! I know you are burning to add your magic touch, do so if you feel like it! When I translate your "very close to natural" I read something into it, LOL! It means " not much PP work and you could do more here!"
Hey little Sister , you should overwork your reading of my thoughts or typing ........... .
I actually meant it as i wrote , OP does look like i have been there. Stunning detail and very realistic tones , at least to me , maybe a bit less yellows and some color tweaks as per Mark , thatīs it .
Andreas, who wants to watch football when you've got BPN? Glad you're happy enough with my image because I have moved onto something new already time to experiment a bit I might need some feedback with the next...
Once again thank you for comments, help, humour, and of course for viewing - I really appreciate it!
Lovely specimen, Gabriela, and the RP works better for me ito crop and contrast!
I love it when they roar next to the vehicle, special sightings and the whole earth seems to tremble.
Looking forward to more from you...I'd like to see more of this guy, to perhaps ID him?
Can I be honest here and please do not laugh at me. The Earth did tremble a lot that morning and so did my heart...Male and female were roaring together only feet away from us, they were roaring towards us as if we were the subjects of their attention, and I took the 500 off to change for the 300 and my hands were trembling, my ears were ringing and my eyes wet...and then the 300 was too big and I did not have a 200 so what the heck I just sat there and took it all in...Probably the best thing I have ever done for myself while in the Kalahari because I love these beasts so much but I never take my eyes off the lens to really SEE them and LISTEN to them, I always switch off so I can shoot. This was different...
Would like to ID this couple, at first I thought it was Charlie-Ash but the inverted C is not there. Although I deleted some not-so-good images from my KTP hard drive, I still have a backup with all images for ID purposes. Andre maintains he did have a "C" but on the other hind leg, I will look through my folders and see what I can find. Andre busy posting one image of him with his female right now and I will post some more as well. Would love to know his name...
Thanks again Morkel, you brought back some vivid memories with your comments:)
Forgot to mention, my 70-200 lens is arriving this week:)
Warmest regards,
Last edited by Gabriela Plesea; 11-10-2014 at 02:27 PM.
The Exotic Appeal of a Kalahari Lion
Reply With Quote
!!!
. 
.
I might need some feedback with the next...
