For Steve Levert portrait Brown Hare Lepus europeas UK
Like so many here Mr Kaluski has been tireless in his efforts to push me forwards. I've popped this one up for you mate because you have constantly driven me towards higher isos. My inabilities and insecurities re processing have made progress slow,but I feel this portrait might show some progress leastways I hope so,we'll see.
Due to circumstances i've had more time on my hands than normal of late, to try and make images and I 've jumped on that chance. This has coincided with an incredible gift of good fortune with some baby hares and an adult or two it might be said. I've been able to go back over and over and feel I've learnt much from the repeat nature as a photographer,plus have been fortunate so see and try to capture so many behavious that I was not previously aware of. By taking things very slowly and spending hours and hours on the floor with them (no hides) they are letting me get very close and see a unique side of their world . They are also approaching us often too close as here really, a zoom would help at times as i'm getting caught out . But no complaints this has and is being the most amazing nature and photography experience for me and my lass,beyond any dreams I could imagine just weeks back when I found the first little one.
HH lying prone, ha ha elbows and knees in tatters 420mm, I am shooting bare at 300mm at times now. The frame is uncropped and I wish I had a smidgen more to the LHS she kept turning her head from side to side while staring at me, those whiskers I found tricky to keep in frame. The image is taken in deep shade from the oilseed rape BKG but directly under and into the sun. It was quite strange if I put my head up enough for the sun to catch my face she became invisible even though she is just 5 yards away. It is Taz my first little mate,I now believe she's a little girl. I am fortunately to be able to have others now as well it's real dreamland all this for me,it's been so cool to get my head down in the field and really graft at this,like I've always wanted too
Thank you all for the previous comments, your constant honesty on my previous images,sorry so many hares of late. Special thanks to Jon again I know I haven't been back in touch much mate,I've been really pushing in the field!! But I believe you have really helped me leastways I hope so,i'll know after the feedback WDYT?
Stu you are coming on in lepus and bounds!! The image is instantly eye catching the all important eye is pin sharp. I really like the colours of the leveret.
I may be tempted to add just a tiny bit more sharpening around the nose, it is not quite so pin sharp there due to DOF but that is to be expected. The greens in the background look a little heavy but I appreciate that is probably how they were but if you were so inclined you can selectively lighten them in DPP. The shot looks pretty clean for ISO 5000.
Great shot - love it!!
Stu you are coming on in lepus and bounds!! The image is instantly eye catching the all important eye is pin sharp. I really like the colours of the leveret.
I may be tempted to add just a tiny bit more sharpening around the nose, it is not quite so pin sharp there due to DOF but that is to be expected. The greens in the background look a little heavy but I appreciate that is probably how they were but if you were so inclined you can selectively lighten them in DPP. The shot looks pretty clean for ISO 5000.
Great shot - love it!!
Lepus and bounds love it
Mate apologies for not getting back as I'd have liked,wont dwell you know why ,but I really feel you helped me so much John with those edits I'm so grateful. Those hairs on the muzzle are so soft and fine John i'm constantly worrying on them while evaluating sharpness. Point noted for later on though I wanted more DOF,but really felt I had nowhere to go, not really wanting to drop the SS anymore. I'm slowly notching the iso upwards getting ever happier with what I can accomplish at 5000 now,but still unsure at 6400. I have added a bit of NR in DPP not much. I'll look at the bkg,John but yes it's the oilseed rape again deep shade it is dark and heavy but I quite liked how she stood out against it.
I'm happier with the colour this time too Jon ,but they are difficult to portray at times. The colour varies so much with light and individuals,it's been really brought home to me of late to try harder to pay attention to colour,they just aren't as straight forwards as I previously thought.
Jon thanks again,I feel your help got me back on track a bit plus it's been so cool to just get at it head down and graft. i'm dumbstruck with what we have seen and amassed Jon. Still no boxing but we nearly got gifted that too a few days back it would almost be unfair now to get those too.
Hi Stu - You are improving with each image. I agree with your self-critique about a little more room to the left but good job shooting vertical . Good points by Jon about colors and dof. Keep them coming.
Hi Stu - You are improving with each image. I agree with your self-critique about a little more room to the left but good job shooting vertical . Good points by Jon about colors and dof. Keep them coming.
TFS,
Rachel
Thank you Rachel,I'd still say up and down a bit I do appreciate the kindness though and as always it's qualified by you always being so honest with me,which I've always been grateful for.
I've really feel I've learnt alot with these wonderful little guys Rachel,more will follow I have so many I see fluffy ears in my sleep
Stu, I'm new here but I've been following your hare pictures.
Always enjoy the stories going with them, and it also shows that perseverance pays off in the long run.
It's amazing how close you're getting and when I first saw this image I thought, how do you get a picture looking up at a wild hare like that? Amazing!
I love the details in his face, especially the eye. And how high that horizon line is in the eye. Again showing how low to the ground and how close you were.
You know you're doing something right, if the telephoto lens gets to long!
Martin,the warmest of welcomes to BPN,may your stay be long and enjoyable. Martin the post above is very humbling for me, thank you doesn't really cut it !! Can I say that all this these hare images I feel are I direct result of the help, kindness and honesty of the guys in this forum,the fieldcraft, the mad guy that talks to animals thinks he can bumble up to a baby hare even have a nap with it and be cool is me it's what I've always done since being a small child . But the images couldn't have happened without the consistent education from these incredible photographers all around us here.I know that i my heart Martin.
Thanks for the words on my little friends. I find them trusting animals Martin,that we hunt, that we have instilled a fear into. If I try to work around that fear,do not present myself as a threat,be small.... insignificant,then sometimes that base trust that I feel is in them shows. Obviously i'm building on a chance here the young lady pictured above actually came bounding after me on one of our early encounters,I think she is slightly mad too. I've been pretty much a regular feature in these leverets lives since very early on,so they maybe haven't yet got that fear of us :to them I'm something normal maybe,that has always been about. So I'm using all this to get so close. It's difficult to articulate Martin there is almost a spell,a bond at times,but they are wild. If I make one wrong move one sudden jerk anything that takes me into their perceived threat zone then they are gone, the spell is broken. I'm in head to to camo Martin face hands covered most of the time although once in and settled I'll ditch the face covering(i've got a camera in my face anyway then so the white blob that has potential to be a threat isn't such an issue). So essentially this is how I feel I am getting so close. It's a combination of factors but that base premise of me not being percieved as a threat being the most important. Oh one last thing i'm firing off images way to early in each stalk,they'll almost all be deleted, what i'm doing is letting the hare or leveret hear the shutter noise get used to it get familiar with it. They have remarkable hearing again I don't want that noise to be a threat to them.
Thank you for the kind reply Martin I look forwards to seeing your work here soon. I hope this helps explain in some small way how these images are being made and how I'm getting so close. It's been a remarkable experience for me mate for beyond what I could wish for
This works so nicely for me. Very sweet pose you captured, and I absolutely love that soft muzzle of your Leveret and expression. Good techs, I quite like the framing as well as POV. Some nice detail coming through. HA is...well...almost there Just teasing you, never easy with those little chaps I am sure, they keep moving and looking around, nose twitching, etc.
Agree with Jon on a bit more sharpening, but check please, your little un' seems to have the "blues" - you could remove them to some extent if you like (muzzle and one ear in particular). Also, a slight curve adjustment would bring more pop to that lovely soft fur. All up to you, IMO you could extract more here, me thinking Steve would like that:)
Really enjoying all your latest posts. Your work has improved tremendously, both in the field as well as processing. So happy for you! Thank you for your hard work, as well as for sharing!
Hi Stu well i can only echo the above comments .
Lovely hare image you have created , i very much like the tightness of the frame but agree that you might have a bit more on the LHS .
Technically i think this is one of your best posts to date , from my POV .
Overall i might try to drop the blues/ cyan and oranges .It might be just me or a personal pref .....i do always reduce the oranges in DPP depending on the picture style more or even more x2
This works so nicely for me. Very sweet pose you captured, and I absolutely love that soft muzzle of your Leveret and expression. Good techs, I quite like the framing as well as POV. Some nice detail coming through. HA is...well...almost there Just teasing you, never easy with those little chaps I am sure, they keep moving and looking around, nose twitching, etc.
Agree with Jon on a bit more sharpening, but check please, your little un' seems to have the "blues" - you could remove them to some extent if you like (muzzle and one ear in particular). Also, a slight curve adjustment would bring more pop to that lovely soft fur. All up to you, IMO you could extract more here, me thinking Steve would like that:)
Really enjoying all your latest posts. Your work has improved tremendously, both in the field as well as processing. So happy for you! Thank you for your hard work, as well as for sharing!
Kind regards,
Hey Gabriela,how are ya mate
I adore the detail you good folks see in an image Gabby You are right on the blues and I simply didn't see it. i've pondered this one Gabby if I'd have painted her I know I'd have put blue in there,I guess it really is one of those fine points where artistic choice might well be open. But at the same time i'm grateful for you pointing it out,as it's another lesson in looking harder. Thank you. Gabby can you give me a little more detail on the curves adjustment please,is it global? Anything I can do to improve detail while unable to work selectively,is something I really need to explore at this time.
Gabbriela i'm so glad you are sharing my joy in all this, for me it's credit to you guys ,your kindness, that I have been able to make an image like the above. To be able to get my head down so frequently, and really spend some time trying to get to grips with a situation is an incredibly rare thing for me. It's simply been so special Gabby.
Her colours are changing as she's getting bigger,bless her. As I emerse my self in them, these little details are becoming more and more apparent. I feel i'm getting to see a secret world few others have.
Hi Stu well i can only echo the above comments .
Lovely hare image you have created , i very much like the tightness of the frame but agree that you might have a bit more on the LHS .
Technically i think this is one of your best posts to date , from my POV .
Overall i might try to drop the blues/ cyan and oranges .It might be just me or a personal pref .....i do always reduce the oranges in DPP depending on the picture style more or even more x2
Keep up the good work , TFS Andreas
Hey Andreas how ya doing buddy?
I think it might be one of the best re technically Andreas,it's simply the product of a lot of time being able to practice with them. I still worry on how far I can push the iso on the mark iv and still get a good result just using DPP. But I know now I can get to 5000 and it's at least acceptable.
Andreas re the oranges,would you still drop then if you were only presenting the image in dpp like I have to at this time? always is a big statement to make i'm very curious here
I spent alot of time looking at the colour but in the end as presented the image has the colour palette left untouched. I have boosted the saturation by 1 (which I rarely do in dpp) and just knocked the global tone to the red side by one. this gave ,me at least her basic colour that I see Andreas ,she is starting to show that red/orange tint to her chest now that the adults often show. That colour wasn't so evident when she was younger,but I'm becoming very aware of it now. Jon gave me alot to think about on colour with his recent help,I explored alot with it but kept coming back to that very basic step I have outlined as where I was happiest. I need to be better with the colour editing Andreas,but these last few posts and the help from you all has been of great benefit I feel. It is so tricky though Andreas because they are not all one colour. As I learn more these hares have become by far the hardest animals I have taken images of so far for me to represent individual colour as I'm seeing it. WB was set by eyedropper.
Again mate, thanks for your honesty whether good or bad I need that honesty , Andreas I value this facet that you good folks have always given me so much !
Hi Stu sorry to be late,when I first looked I thought the twitchy nose was a bit soft but the eye looked spot on,it's interesting when you look close how many whiskers these little chaps have,not time to count them but there are a lot.Well caught Stu.
Hi Stu ....as I stated and state always ,when it comes to color it is many times very subjective .It is up to the photographer to get what he wants and think what he wants to achieve ....will he/she want natural colors he/she had in mind ? Or do the photographer like the colors more saturated or muted ....many questions I ask myself with every posted or printed image .I as a viewer of your image would go on a different route than you , not saying I am right or wrong , just different .
As a general rule ( in DPP) I drop the oranges , just because DPP algorithm does seem push red/oranges to a certain degree , which I do not like , and I never touched the saturation in DPP upward ....always downward . For sure saying this all with having PS in my backhand , for the final touch up .
But I tried to use just DPP and still drop the orange/red .....so up to you how to get along with this .
see my comment referring to your OP ....look how much of blue ,cyan you have in there .......
I use rarely the eyedropper for WB ....unless I have a half way decent neutral color in the frame ....too much of trial and error if you have no such neutral color in an image .
I go with the temp sliders and get my results quite quickly .....
BTW - specially the MK IV does have the red/orange tendency in the colors , the 1Dx and 1Dx II are more neutral .....in general .
well I hope this helps ....Stu
cheers Andreas
Hi Stu sorry to be late,when I first looked I thought the twitchy nose was a bit soft but the eye looked spot on,it's interesting when you look close how many whiskers these little chaps have,not time to count them but there are a lot.Well caught Stu.
Keith.
Hiya Keith,
I think the light coming from behind, although she's in shade, really made the old whiskers stand out Keith,certainly the frame really draws attention to them. It was so tricky trying to get them all in frame mate.
Many thanks Keith, i'm having a ball with them you would love this buddy
Hi Stu ....as I stated and state always ,when it comes to color it is many times very subjective .It is up to the photographer to get what he wants and think what he wants to achieve ....will he/she want natural colors he/she had in mind ? Or do the photographer like the colors more saturated or muted ....many questions I ask myself with every posted or printed image .I as a viewer of your image would go on a different route than you , not saying I am right or wrong , just different .
As a general rule ( in DPP) I drop the oranges , just because DPP algorithm does seem push red/oranges to a certain degree , which I do not like , and I never touched the saturation in DPP upward ....always downward . For sure saying this all with having PS in my backhand , for the final touch up .
But I tried to use just DPP and still drop the orange/red .....so up to you how to get along with this .
see my comment referring to your OP ....look how much of blue ,cyan you have in there .......
I use rarely the eyedropper for WB ....unless I have a half way decent neutral color in the frame ....too much of trial and error if you have no such neutral color in an image .
I go with the temp sliders and get my results quite quickly .....
BTW - specially the MK IV does have the red/orange tendency in the colors , the 1Dx and 1Dx II are more neutral .....in general .
well I hope this helps ....Stu
cheers Andreas
Yes it does Andreas ,It's a very enlightening post thank you very much indeed My apologies I'm distracted and nearly missed it!! The note about the mark iv is especially interesting Andreas,it's never occurred to me that canon sensors might vary for colour !! Yes normally I avoid the sat slider,it's so powerful it normally overcooks every thing,I will look at the blues /cyan andreas. I try the eye dropper often ,but seem to be moving to the colour temp slider more and more often now. In this case I liked where it took the image and apart from those blues(you and Gabby have mentioned) am happy with her colour. But I am struggling a bit with these hares my friend on colour. I think these little debates and points raised are helping me get closer to where I am happy though Andreas.
I think part of my problem at this stage Andreas is me just simply being unsure about almost everything but I'll keep trying ,it's fantastic fun and slowly find my path. At the moment I need to be open to all the ideas and work through them.
For Steve Levert portrait Brown Hare Lepus europeas UK
because you have constantly driven me towards higher isos. My inabilities and insecurities re processing have made progress slow,but I feel this portrait might show some progress leastways I hope so,we'll see.
420mm, I am shooting bare at 300mm at times now. The frame is uncropped and I wish I had a smidgen more to the LHS she kept turning her head from side to side while staring at me, those whiskers I found tricky to keep in frame. The image is taken in deep shade from the oilseed rape BKG but directly under and into the sun. It was quite strange if I put my head up enough for the sun to catch my face she became invisible even though she is just 5 yards away. It is Taz my first little mate,I now believe she's a little girl
. I am fortunately to be able to have others now as well it's real dreamland all this for me,it's been so cool to get my head down in the field and really graft at this,like I've always wanted too
WDYT?
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Originally Posted by Jonathan Ashton
. Very sweet pose you captured, and I absolutely love that soft muzzle of your Leveret and expression. Good techs, I quite like the framing as well as POV. Some nice detail coming through. HA is...well...almost there
