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A kudu in sunset

Just as the sun set one evening in South Luangwa we came across some kudus that walked through a opening, just as the setting sun shined through. I got the opportunity to try a sunset backlit photo :)
Nikon D4
Nikon 600 mm
f5,6 | 1/1000 SS | ISO-11400
Exposure -0,85, adjusted curves and selectively sharpened.
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Lifetime Member
Hi Gregor - Always nice to experiment in the field. I like the backlighting but would like to see the sky tamed a bit more. The biggest issue I have though is the second kudu in the bg intersecting with the main subject. I would have preferred to have separation between the two. There's also a green cast so if it were mine I would reduce the greens.
TFS,
Rachel
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BPN Member
Hi Gregor,
I really like this image, the only thing what cuts a bit is the Kudu in the back. For me it looks the FG Kudu was on the move I assume you had not much chance to get it alone.
Agree with Rachel's comment on the highlights and greens. Sometimes we do not see the color casts, it helps a bit to let the image sit and come back later again after 1 hour or day 
Have a great day
Ciao Anette
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Macro and Flora Moderator
You had the opportunity and it was well taken, I really like the image, the kudu in the background is perhaps less than ideal but it is a very eye catching image.
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BPN Member
Hi Gregor very nice moody image .
Good suggestions made by Rachel in which i agree .
TFS Andreas
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Story Sequences Moderator and Wildlife Moderator
Hello Gregor,
I think I can imagine this scene as you saw it... and surely it made quite an impression on you. I often wish the camera could perform as well as the human eye, capturing the beautiful light and true atmosphere of a sunrise or a sunset - in your case this critical moment when the sun is about to fade and you are watching those kudu through your lens, their backs lit up by the incandescent sun - a very special sighting.
The 600mm is a thirsty one, I am wondering if less lens would have been more beneficial here, under the circumstances? I love the golden rim around the subjects' bodies, yet would have liked less brightness in the sky above, a bit more space on the LHS, and Rachel is quite right about the greens - perhaps a tad too much; the mood is great indeed and there's a sense of tranquility here, also one of awe as we are witnessing Nature in all its beauty - a very attractive image I begin to like more and more as I spend time viewing it
Thank you Gregor, I appreciate you sharing this and always hope for more...
Kind regards,
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BPN Member
I love the lighting one gets in the woodlands of the Mana Pools and South Luangwa ecosystems...exquisite to say the least. The rim light around the kudu is very nicely handled.
I too wish they didn't intersect, and I find there's a smoothness to the fine detail (something I've picked up on with various of your images posted here, Gregor
), perhaps overcooking of noise reduction in the RAW conversion phase?
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Hi everyone
Tanks for good comments, as usual. It buggers me that i missed the green cast, beginners error..
As you can understand I didnīt get one kudu clean in the opening (or I actually did, but it was turned away so it is not working at all), but I still like this and wanted to test it out on you guys. This is anyway one of my first backlit pictures, and critique is needed.
Highlights to much, check - get it. It is so blown away so I donīt think is possible to correct on this picture. But it is a mindnote for next time being out there.
ISO here is high, and in pp I lowered down exposure. I guess it would be better IQ to dial in something like -0.66 exp comp in camera and go down accordingly much in ISO (her it would be almost 6400 instead of 11400). Or what do you think? My (limited) experience tells me that in dark settings with high iso, IQ is also sensitive to exposure compensation.
I could probaly also have done a bit less SS, and managed a sharp pic.
Learning..
Morkel - softness is probably due to pp/workflow. I still only work in LR. So I sharpen the objective selectively, and then was lazy and added noise reduction (I try to apply as little NR as possible) to the whole image. Could/should have painted out all the bg and added noise reduction selectively. But I guess, a better workflow is to process two pictures (one with focus on the object and one with focus on the bg), and then blend them in PS. I guess that is what you are doing, and hence expecting better IQ.