The Mighty Lion

[Nancy Bell]

Another portrait from Africa. These big cats are totally magnificent! This one casually strolled past our vehicle as cameras clicked! There is a tracker who sits just forward of the front bumper of the vehicle with no special protection. I watched several times as the animals came within feet of him. I couldn't tell but maybe he was holding his breath as well as not moving a muscle! We were told not to stand up in the vehicle (there was no roof) so the outline of the vehicle did not alter or appear moving to the predators. We did not want to interfere with their natural behavior nor did we want them to fixate on any individual person.

I used a combination of Topaz Impression and fractalius for this, and removed the effects from the eyes.

[Dennis Bishop]

The close crop is effective in giving the impression that the lion is close. Too close. Even though it looks as though it's recently eaten and may no longer be hungry, I'd not want to be the guide sitting out there.

[gary ellwein]

Nancy, I like what you have done with this image. The eyes are the focal point of a living being and you have effectively isolated them. The mane does not compete with the eyes but still retains it's wonderful texture and color.

[Nancy Bell]

Thank you Dennis & Gary! Dennis, this lion and his brothers had indeed just gorged themselves on buffalo and were now heading for a drink. Gary, these brothers had spectacular ginger-colored manes! This is a full frame image without cropping.

[Anita Bower]

Fantastic shot! This image says LION!!!! Great eyes, fur, mouth. Love the colors. The only thing I'd suggest is to darken the lighter areas on the left side of the image as they pull my eye away from the face, which is the main attraction.

[Diane Miller]

Gorgeous! I agree with Anita on all counts!

[Nancy Bell]

Good suggestion, Anita. Will do. Thank you all for looking and commenting.

[Michael Gerald-Yamasaki]

Nancy,

Greetings. I like the expression and the close composition. I can't quite place the mane, wonder what you would think about cropping it to just inside the brighter line? The color is outstanding. Something along the bottom edge. I'd touch that up. Thanks for posting (more, more).

Cheers,

-Michael-

[Dennis Bishop]

The "something along the bottom edge" looks like an effect I sometimes get from Fractalius. Because it appears only at the edges, I've wondered about expanding the canvas a bit before applying it, but I'm not at all confident that would work. I have tried masking it away but wan't happy with the results.

[Nancy Bell]

Michael & Dennis, I think fractalius does have a bleeding type of edge effect on some images. On this one I don't have any room below the chin for trimming away. That's a potential solution by expanding the canvas first. If that bright part of the mane on the left edge doesn't work with a vignette-type approach, I can crop it away.