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Thread: Cottonmouth Water Moccasin

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    Default Cottonmouth Water Moccasin

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    Dottie and I encountered this chap a couple years ago. It was crossing the path we were walking on while photographing birds. This snake can bring a world of hurt and a trip to the hospital if bitten, one of the few venomous snakes in Florida. Geoffrey's post brought it to mind, so I thought I would post it. Comments and critique welcomed and appreciated. Thank you for viewing.

    Nikon D7000
    Nikon 70-300mm VR AF-S ED shot at 300mm (450mm FFE)
    1/400 F/5.6 Matrix Metering 0 EV ISO 200
    Post processed in Lightroom 5 and Photoshop Elements 10
    Cropped for composition
    Joe Przybyla

    "Sometimes I do get to places just as God is ready to have somebody click the shutter"... Ansel Adams

    www.amazinglight.smugmug.com

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    Lifetime Member Ákos Lumnitzer's Avatar
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    The greens look just a little too bright. Would prefer a lower POV, but I guess you do the best with the situation.
    Well done Joe!

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    I can understand why you didn't want to get too low so a neat shot considering the subject!!

    I agree with Akos about the greens - one tip I got from a landscape photographer is that if you have an image with a lot of greens that look too vivid he knocks the yellows back a bit. It does seem to work on some photos I have and this looks like it could work here as well.

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    Lifetime Member Rachel Hollander's Avatar
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    Hi Joe - Always nice to see a different species. I think there was actually a death last week attributed to the water moccasin. Some guy got bit 2x while swimming but didn't seek help and died overnight.

    I agree with the others about a lower pov but easier to say in hindsight. I'm not on my calibrated screen right now due to computer issues but if the greens are too bright then you can drop the yellows but you can also darken the greens use the eyedropper in a hue/saturation layer. Shout if you need some instructions how.

    TFS,
    Rachel

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    Lifetime Member Marc Mol's Avatar
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    Good to see a different species here Joe, agree on the POV and good suggestion from Mike to drop the yellow (especially luminance) to bring the greens down a tad.

    TFS


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    Story Sequences Moderator and Wildlife Moderator Gabriela Plesea's Avatar
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    Hello Joseph!

    Whew, I am not surprised you did not bend down for lower POV, from what I read above this is quite a dangerous snake and I am glad you gave this character due respect:)

    My suggestion might seem a bit far-fetched, but I am thinking should you crop a tad from the top you might create the illusion of a lower POV. That brings me to the eye, which is - I am afraid - something a snake must have in a photograph - unless it is a mole snake:) - I humbly suggest you try open up that area a little?

    It is indeed a lovely sighting of this slithery fellow, and I really like snakes, although I had a Forst Cobra in the garden who bit my doberman a few years ago and I barely saved him with the help of anti-venom ( I later caught the snake in a pool net and released her back into the wild where she belonged). A couple of years back - while in the Kalahari - I stepped with my bare foot on a Puff Adder, it was late at night and I did not see her...she was so kind to tap me gentle on the ankle to say "leave me be" which I obviously did straight away.
    Well, enough of my snake stories... this image triggered some memories though. A little careful PP work will reveal more detail I think, worth a try IMO since it is a very special encounter, I really appreciate you sharing this - enjoyed viewing, a lot

    Kind regards,
    Gabriela Plesea

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    Thanks everyone for viewing, commenting, and offering suggestions to improve the image. I appreciated your interest, time and effort. Thanks again.
    Joe Przybyla

    "Sometimes I do get to places just as God is ready to have somebody click the shutter"... Ansel Adams

    www.amazinglight.smugmug.com

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    Quote Originally Posted by Gabriela Plesea View Post
    Hello Joseph!

    Whew, I am not surprised you did not bend down for lower POV, from what I read above this is quite a dangerous snake and I am glad you gave this character due respect:)

    My suggestion might seem a bit far-fetched, but I am thinking should you crop a tad from the top you might create the illusion of a lower POV. That brings me to the eye, which is - I am afraid - something a snake must have in a photograph - unless it is a mole snake:) - I humbly suggest you try open up that area a little?

    It is indeed a lovely sighting of this slithery fellow, and I really like snakes, although I had a Forst Cobra in the garden who bit my doberman a few years ago and I barely saved him with the help of anti-venom ( I later caught the snake in a pool net and released her back into the wild where she belonged). A couple of years back - while in the Kalahari - I stepped with my bare foot on a Puff Adder, it was late at night and I did not see her...she was so kind to tap me gentle on the ankle to say "leave me be" which I obviously did straight away.
    Well, enough of my snake stories... this image triggered some memories though. A little careful PP work will reveal more detail I think, worth a try IMO since it is a very special encounter, I really appreciate you sharing this - enjoyed viewing, a lot

    Kind regards,
    Thank you for viewing and suggesting improvements. The images of the Cottonmouth were snaps of the snake just because it crossed our path. Reading your snake stories was captivating and scary, so relieved that your dog recovered and is well. With the snakes and alligators in Florida it is not the ones I see that are a concern rather it is the ones I do not see.

    Best regards, and do be careful.
    Joe Przybyla

    "Sometimes I do get to places just as God is ready to have somebody click the shutter"... Ansel Adams

    www.amazinglight.smugmug.com

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