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Thread: Fallow

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    A small group detached slightly from a much larger group of maybe 30 individuals taken just a while before the boys. A while before the bucks recently posted so naturally the light a bit harsher. This is about as relaxed as these guys get most of the rest were lying down. It was a lovely few moments with them broken by walkers!! Tried hard with the framing this is slightly off full frame cropped for getting my levels wrong predominantly,oh and a bit off the bottom I really would have liked another focal point downwards for this. Lying prone on some barbed wire in the bottom of a hedge hand held wonderful !!

    Canon,1Div 300mmf2.8 ext 1.4 iii

    iso 800

    f9 pushing to get them all in focus

    TV 1600 manual
    Andreas, Steve if you see this, then, this should be sRGB,if not then tis pilot error !! I'll correct once I know

    For the theme as I've been sneaky and no one knew I was there, so no eye contact,maybe some ear stuff though

    thanks for all the help and pearls of wisdom on my previous threads here

    Stu

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    Wildlife Moderator Steve Kaluski's Avatar
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    Hi Stu, firstly I will respond to your PM when I have some clear space and yes this is sRGB. Some folks think that they don't need to convert, or let the Browser do it, how wrong, so great that you have this simple but fundamental item under your belt.

    OK, not a WOW shot of a feeding herd, but you are getting out there and putting things into practice. You won't get everything in focus, just perhaps in this instance centre point on the main hind, let the rest fall off. Yes some eye contact would be good and getting low has helped, likewise keeping the horizon level. Not sure how steady that wire was, may swing a bit, you just need to be rock steady as any movement will transfer to the camera. Exposure looks OK, I think you need to understand about getting the White & Black points, hard I think in DPP, but it really makes a big difference. Perhaps +2 on some saturation just to bring some colour and I diid a little USM (Sharpening) but the OP looks a bit soft. There is a bit more you can do regarding the overall colour, but that is for later on, lets get some basics finalised.

    Enjoy Easter and if the weather holds, get out there.

    TFS
    Steve

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    Lifetime Member Rachel Hollander's Avatar
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    Hi Stu - You are improving by leaps and bounds. I like what Steve has done and he makes excellent points for both in the field and in pp. Looking forward to the next one.

    TFS,
    Rachel

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    Stu Steve's repost as lifted your image and given it a bit more body,well done to yourself for getting the original shot of these contented grazers.

    Keith.

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    BPN Member Morkel Erasmus's Avatar
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    Hey Stu - good advice given above. I'd have loved one or more with head up and looking in various directions.
    Morkel Erasmus

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    Hi Stu -- Nice low POV and Steves RP has lifted this image . Always good to see animals in their environment , great going and TFS !

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    Quote Originally Posted by Steve Kaluski View Post
    Hi Stu, firstly I will respond to your PM when I have some clear space and yes this is sRGB. Some folks think that they don't need to convert, or let the Browser do it, how wrong, so great that you have this simple but fundamental item under your belt.

    OK, not a WOW shot of a feeding herd, but you are getting out there and putting things into practice. You won't get everything in focus, just perhaps in this instance centre point on the main hind, let the rest fall off. Yes some eye contact would be good and getting low has helped, likewise keeping the horizon level. Not sure how steady that wire was, may swing a bit, you just need to be rock steady as any movement will transfer to the camera. Exposure looks OK, I think you need to understand about getting the White & Black points, hard I think in DPP, but it really makes a big difference. Perhaps +2 on some saturation just to bring some colour and I diid a little USM (Sharpening) but the OP looks a bit soft. There is a bit more you can do regarding the overall colour, but that is for later on, lets get some basics finalised.

    Enjoy Easter and if the weather holds, get out there.

    TFS
    Steve
    Hiya Steve,buddy please in your time with the pm,no rush mate just gratitude!!

    Black and white points i'm doing via the highlight shadow alerts Steve,I pull the end in in the gamma until I get a warning showing,then back off a bit,maybe I need to try and be more accurate,I'll do that with my next images processed,maybe i'm not honing things enough.

    Steve as always your repost is of incredible help and takes what I can achieve upwards,I hope they don't take you too long,they are all hugely appreciated. Sorry buddy not using the wire as a rest,laughing at my self because I got hooked up in it and was so focused on the deer hadn't even realized I was lying in it. Rest would have been either my left elbow on the ground, or gloved hand directly on ground,but no not using the wire persay as a rest,much more solid

    Steve cheers for the saturation tip,I'm warey of that control it can be so easy to overdo,but used in the right circumstances as you have done has worked very nicely

    No not really a wow factor at all I concur,just a simple english scene really for me.(Creatively it's tricky to make a simple group of fallow into something special Steve,but I'm, working on it mate have some ideas,just have to keep trying Steve I wanted to support the theme,I think it's a great creative learning /thinking tool you guys have there,this was one of few I could find with no eye contact. Morkel yes great tip,I'd have loved one head up looking away,I have shots similar,but they form this sort of defensive circle if at all spooked.Invaribly someone has an eye in my direction so I couldn't use for the theme. Morkel cheers for this though, your creative thoughts I admire much !!!

    Yes Steve basics first, I need a solid foundation to build off for sure.

    Thanks all for the kind words of support and help,little steps Rachel, cheers for all the wisdom on my previous posts here

    Happy Easter to all and yes Steve as time allows we are and having a ball I might add

    take care

    Stu

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    Macro and Flora Moderator Jonathan Ashton's Avatar
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    Stu I like the image but a little disappointed none have a lifted head for eye contact, but who am I to talk, it takes some doing to get close to genuine wild deer. Your effective focal length was roughly 500mm plus - what was the shutter speed, I too thought the original post looked a little soft.
    I like Steve's repost, don't forget his comments are related to the file that had already been processed. Also the raw file has a different appearance in ACR and DPP, even when the ACR conversion is set to Canon Standard, and of course when you do get Lightroom or similar your raw file settings will not transfer from one programme to the other, i.e. the raw images will always look different when opened in the other programme.

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    Quote Originally Posted by Jonathan Ashton View Post
    Stu I like the image but a little disappointed none have a lifted head for eye contact, but who am I to talk, it takes some doing to get close to genuine wild deer. Your effective focal length was roughly 500mm plus - what was the shutter speed, I too thought the original post looked a little soft.
    I like Steve's repost, don't forget his comments are related to the file that had already been processed. Also the raw file has a different appearance in ACR and DPP, even when the ACR conversion is set to Canon Standard, and of course when you do get Lightroom or similar your raw file settings will not transfer from one programme to the other, i.e. the raw images will always look different when opened in the other programme.

    Hey buddy how ya doing? John, I was trying to contribute to the theme so lack of eye contact was paramount,I can provide others, !!!
    But you are right they are some alert guys I fail much mate. Buddy shutter was 1/1600 if I've done my maths correct,who knows lol, 546mm. I've been out since this over Easter John,and practiced at home(working up a bird feeder for practice and 'cause they are my little mates),much thought is going into how I handle that precise moment of shutter press,but still I'm producing soft images. All I can say is I need to work harder John: It feels like it has to be this as I am consistently producing images that are not sharp enough,so it must be my doing.surely 1/1600 should have got me there. Sure no tripod but I would have been pretty solid,ha, despite the wire!!

    Johnathan the latter part of your post I need to read a few times to understand!! I want ps cc mate I am fairly certain of this and to convert in DPP,there are folks here artie Andreas Arash lots more who inspire whom work like this. Man I adore Steve subtle processing too,some use lr some dpp I guess it's all personal,but thanks for all this John let me dig a while, much to absorb!!
    thank you Johnathan!!

    take care

    Stu

    PS:
    Oh buddy have a look to see if you have an unanswered pm from me,I need to work out how to get the right size for here faster some method to it,thanks so much for the help mate !!

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    Stu, well done! I love the little group quietly munching, the POV and the bare trees in the BG. Steve's repost is very good. I thought the "theme" was "no eye contact". You have certainly kept to the theme. Balancing on a barbed wire fence is not good for sharpness. Diane, over in ETL pushes that home at every chance. The camera must be stable. I'm even holding my breath before I push the shutter button!

    I would love to see others, looking at the camera.

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    A simple English scene for you Glennie good old English oaks which I tried to frame the deer with.

    No no not shooting with the camera on a wire fence mate, i'm physically lying on top of what must have been once a fence, in the bottom of a hedge.I thought this would be slightly amusing for a reader ( I was so focused on the beasties I hadn't actually noticed the wire until my coat ripped) ,but if you look back it just caused much confusion,my bad !!

    You take care Glennie

    Stu

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    Story Sequences Moderator and Wildlife Moderator Gabriela Plesea's Avatar
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    Hello Stu,

    I agree with Rachel your PP work is getting better, so is your work out there in the field - well done mate:)

    A few members mentioned the need of at least one character looking up... IMO what this image lacks is an anchor, something to give away a bit of emotion, or attitude, group dynamics perhaps, something extra to help with composition: you need to break the monotony here. The subjects' heads/muzzles are buried in the grass, eyes closed or barely visible, perhaps too tranquil and sleepy a scene? Steve can help you a great deal with colours and sharpness, PP work etc., but there are some things you cannot change during post-processing. Maybe a good exercise when out there in the field to try and see things with a more critical eye and ask yourself "What would grab my viewers, my critics? Am I giving them enough elements of interest? What will the final product look like?" I guess in this case all you had to do was wait for one buck to raise its head?

    You are improving tremendously and I also like the way you engage with us all, your comments show lots of thoughtfulness and sensitivity. Thank you for this, and let us have some more images please, have fun out there and try bring that arty side of you to life

    Kind regards,
    Gabriela Plesea

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    Quote Originally Posted by Gabriela Plesea View Post
    Hello Stu,

    I agree with Rachel your PP work is getting better, so is your work out there in the field - well done mate:)

    A few members mentioned the need of at least one character looking up... IMO what this image lacks is an anchor, something to give away a bit of emotion, or attitude, group dynamics perhaps, something extra to help with composition: you need to break the monotony here. The subjects' heads/muzzles are buried in the grass, eyes closed or barely visible, perhaps too tranquil and sleepy a scene? Steve can help you a great deal with colours and sharpness, PP work etc., but there are some things you cannot change during post-processing. Maybe a good exercise when out there in the field to try and see things with a more critical eye and ask yourself "What would grab my viewers, my critics? Am I giving them enough elements of interest? What will the final product look like?" I guess in this case all you had to do was wait for one buck to raise its head?

    You are improving tremendously and I also like the way you engage with us all, your comments show lots of thoughtfulness and sensitivity. Thank you for this, and let us have some more images please, have fun out there and try bring that arty side of you to life

    Kind regards,

    Gabrieala absolutely 100 % nail on the head (spot on),I hope that translates. What I mean is this line of thinking is exactly what I'm questing for and struggling with. As a guy that does paint (see my intro) I am so aware of this facet and genuinely am struggling to find that special erm something. Once I've done me creeping up on them and am finally there I do sometimes get time to really ponder.

    Gabrieala,you have highlighted what I see as a massive failing , I am so aware of,but articulated it so well for me you are a complete star. You'll note one of my inspirations I constantly draw from your work is that emotional content.

    Oh kiddo the tanquility comment :you have read so much into this scene. To the right are maybe 30 or so,I forget, dozing, sleeping, lying, does and kids. In many ways that was what I was trying to capture,all through this I had a theme of lazing on a sunny after noon echoing through my head. But you are SO right I failed to grab a special "something"".

    Mate seriously a fabulous post for me I can't thank you enough,that;s without all the other kind things you have said.

    More will follow, already taken, this post will hopefully help sorting them out. I'm glad I am already aware a bit Gabriela ,but so **** cool to have this spelled out. I realise you are talking moment of capture,but this is still relevent to me while I scroll through all these images.

    Tis going to be a long slow road my friend,ahh but the joy of it all.

    take care

    Stu
    ps recently I posted a frame in ETL, of a barn owl. That's the artist showing,there are only glimpses of him at the moment(the shot is all but subconcious as I was caught completely of guard,lots of luck there),most of me is focused on learning these tools properly have a peep,I think he came out because there was no time I just framed and shot .Huge thanks !!

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    Story Sequences Moderator and Wildlife Moderator Gabriela Plesea's Avatar
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    Stu, just like the photographer, the painter "at work" must have a similar sensibility and sense of a given place. He also pays attention to colour, plays with symmetry, etc. but is perhaps a much greater visionary: he exaggerates things a lot to get us to pay attention. A bit like the writer really. The painter is not necessarily an ethical or moral artist, so not always concerned with "this is how the place, or the subject, looked like". The photographer is, to a great extent. He exploits what is there and gives it more life. What I am trying to say is - you need not struggle, you just have to find a way to be both painter and photographer, but somehow separate the two. Even though they are so intimately related.

    Back to this image, the trees in the BG are awesome and create an idyllic backdrop for the subjects. But they do not make up for the lack of interest when it comes to the deer. If I were a painter I would barely sketch the animals in this scene. All I would want is a few silhouettes and those lovely trees, to portray the tranquility you are referring to. More of a challenge for you as photographer, because the image , the photograph as such showcases things as they are, albeit with few tweaks in Photoshop here and there. IMO you need to concentrate on the subjects (deer) and not the surroundings, in order to make this kind of image work.

    Kind regards,
    Gabriela Plesea

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    Quote Originally Posted by Gabriela Plesea View Post
    Stu, just like the photographer, the painter "at work" must have a similar sensibility and sense of a given place. He also pays attention to colour, plays with symmetry, etc. but is perhaps a much greater visionary: he exaggerates things a lot to get us to pay attention. A bit like the writer really. The painter is not necessarily an ethical or moral artist, so not always concerned with "this is how the place, or the subject, looked like". The photographer is, to a great extent. He exploits what is there and gives it more life. What I am trying to say is - you need not struggle, you just have to find a way to be both painter and photographer, but somehow separate the two. Even though they are so intimately related.

    Back to this image, the trees in the BG are awesome and create an idyllic backdrop for the subjects. But they do not make up for the lack of interest when it comes to the deer. If I were a painter I would barely sketch the animals in this scene. All I would want is a few silhouettes and those lovely trees, to portray the tranquility you are referring to. More of a challenge for you as photographer, because the image , the photograph as such showcases things as they are, albeit with few tweaks in Photoshop here and there. IMO you need to concentrate on the subjects (deer) and not the surroundings, in order to make this kind of image work.

    Kind regards,
    Bless you Gabriela, so gracious of you to share more of your thoughts mate,so kind....all understood. I can't really articulate the appreciation but please know how much it is.
    Kiddo, I must go,sorry for my brevity !! More will follow,i'm trying to get my head around a few things processing wise which is slowing posting,but it's been lovely to spend a while here learning and getting the chance to be WOW ed by the talents shown here

    Gabriela
    THANK
    YOU


    Stu

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