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A Tiger in the Woods

After hundreds of 'standard" shots of tigers in India, (actually about 4,000) and already processed a bunch of them, I decided to get into something a little different today.
Again, not for everyone to like, far from perfect, but at least interesting I hope.
Tigers at this park walk very close to our jeeps, and sometimes this happens through the woods, so to keep the trees out of the shot, I took a few side portraits.
Always difficult with a 10 pound camera kit in hand, no support, 3 other people in the truck, and virtual mayhem going on around us as everyone wants our spot!
It's crazy, exciting, fun, and challenging. For this tour, it was especially fun with one guest only, so we had a lot of superb experiences together, most enjoyable.
I have so many great friends in India, without them, success with these tours would be impossible.
D800 / 2-400 vr1
1/500s f/4.0 at 200.0mm iso500
thanks for looking!
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Lifetime Member
Hi Raymond - Nice to see a tiger but unfortunately this isn't really working for me. I tend to like negative space but feel there's too much here and that the amount of tiger shown is too in between so to speak. I would prefer shifting the whole comp up so that there was more space above and cropping from the bottom up to the joint in the leg. I like profile shots. Any chance you shot some tighter profiles of the head in the field? I see you were zoomed out with the lens and imagine you shot some zoomed in as well.
TFS,
Rachel
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Wildlife Moderator
Hi Raymond, I have to agree with Rachel, the overall composition & negative space isn't really grabbing me either. Also with such a magnificent animal I feel I want to see more of the subject, unless as Rachel mentioned, you zoom in for a tighter shot and by having the 200-400 you could have covered both angles. In this case I think going tighter would have helped and reduced the slightly distracting backdrop in front of the subject, however in Wildlife we can rarely choose a perfect environment. On reflection, I feel swopping the format to portrait would have achieved what you were aiming for, plus you would have more space above, but ultimately the whole of the front leg in creating that 'walk into frame' capture and also provided an opportunity to emphasis those fantastic, massive, awesome paws. Based on the techs, I would like to have seen more SS, ISO500 isn't much for a Nikon body and IQ would still be retained, but I think the image could stand some more 'perceptual' sharpening, looks a tad soft.
Always difficult with a 10 pound camera kit in hand, no support, 3 other people in the truck,
You get used to it Raymond in time
, especially with longer lens. Communicating in the vehicle within your group is key and helps to avoid 'bouncing' by others at critical moments, but there are also techniques which you can do yourself that help, which I'm sure you know.
TFS
Steve
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Tiger sightings are always special and exciting. I have to agree with Rachel and Steve on this one. I am sure you have many more to share. I like the retracted ears and the subtle gaze he is giving.
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Hi Raymond -- not a very appealing image for me either ! I liked the way u have approached to shoot on your trip , have seen a lot many tight tiger portraits since everyone wants to play safe when it is a tiger sighting :) . I think in such type of images panning works the best and i believe that thought must have certainly crossed your mind . TFS !
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Thanks for your honest opinions. More and more as time goes on, I find I am having a very eccentric view on the art of photography. I like things that most people dislike, and I do not like things that
others think are excellent. All good, I don't mind being the odd one outside the group, its all for fun and learning.
I am not one to like what I call "encyclopedia" type images, or your a-typical tiger laying on the ground... sure, I have lots of them, but I do find them very boring.
I like something that tells more of a story, this tiger walking through the woods, creates a lot of interest past what you see
in the photo. The viewer is left wondering what is going on, how, and why?
As for portraits, this is something I personally never look for., again, it is just not my style., either with birds, or animals. I enjoy the environmental concept, and prefer the subject to be a small
percentage of the area in the frame. Not all images are going to be within this format, as most time, the environment is not so conducive to the subject. I like to be as creative as possible, using the
camera and lens as an art form, rather then record-making of "sharp" images.
We all have our own likes and dislikes., but the cool thing here is that folks give their honest opinions, suggestions.
I do recommend this forum to a lot of my guests, many come and go.
Thanks again, appreciated.
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BPN Member
Hi Raymond , a little head turn would have made this work a lot better , but in this stage it does not work for me either .
If there was not that much stuff in the busy BG on RHS , it would have been also less problematic .... if ..... but it was as presented so not much you could do.
Overall the blacks are a bit strong and you lost most of the detail in the gums .
But as you said you have more in your arsenal ........ let them out
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TFS Andreas
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BPN Member
Hi Raymond. I like the concept and the earthy tones here, just wish for a tad more head-turn towards you (even a degree or two would have made it stronger IMHO).
As is I would crop some off the bottom for a more "pano" presentation.
Ditto your thoughts on looking for something different than "encyclopedia" shots. I too find myself going off the beaten-down-camera-club path more and more these days...
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Originally Posted by
Morkel Erasmus
Hi Raymond. I like the concept and the earthy tones here, just wish for a tad more head-turn towards you (even a degree or two would have made it stronger IMHO).
As is I would crop some off the bottom for a more "pano" presentation.
Ditto your thoughts on looking for something different than "encyclopedia" shots. I too find myself going off the beaten-down-camera-club path more and more these days...
Very cool Morkel., I like your idea a lot! I am glad someone, of the few regulars sees what I am trying to get across here.
Simply put, I do not expect everyone to like every image I come up with, we all have different views on what is a cool shot, and what is not. This image could have been just another boring shot of a tiger walking by,
but I really hate anything that is too easy. For me, this is all about art, thought, and creativity, not record shots of an animal.
But, note, most of my work since I got into all this has been birds. Which, incidentally happens to be very difficult from a perspective of creativity, and art.
Anyone can take a photo of a lion, or tiger laying around, doing what it does best., so getting past that "stuff" is the fun. Animals are challenging, I have only done a few tours that are
directed to animal imaging, so I look forward to learning and sharing in here, and I really do appreciate all comments, positive or negative.
take care.