Herd of pigmy elephants moving into the water to cross the Kinabatangen River, Borneo. There were about 25 in the herd, they destroyed (ate) all the vegetation on this bank then swam to the other side. Really lucky sighting, ours was the only boat on the river. Really interesting behavior to watch as the herd worked together to help the young. Middle of the day, so not the greatest light.
Canon 7D, 100-400mm, handheld.
f5.6, 1/1250, 180mm, ISO1000.
Greg
Hi Greg - What a great sighting and the pov from the boat really works. Perhaps a bit tight above but it looks like having more room above will mean more of the other eles waiting at the top of the bank. I would have likely gone for more dof but it's not a deal breaker. You handled the midday light well. Nice one.
Oh my, looks as if they are tumbling into the water! Very sweet scene, GregAnd maybe not the best light, but you did expose very well - nice work in the field!
Agree with Rachel above, at first the frame looks a bit tight but you had no other option, either this or a whole lot of ellies at the top. And I hope you don't mind, I borrowed your image and tried a couple of things. I never saw those lovely pigmy fellows in real life so really guessing in terms of colour - I stand to be corrected. Just felt there was a little too much magenta and blue on them, and when I removed both I ended up with too much red, so quickly added some yellow to the reds for more warmth and applied selectively. The next step was a small curve adjustment for more "pop" and then I slightly darkened the visible limbs of the ellies at the very top. As well as water in the FG. Another round of sharpening at very small percentage, hope not too much?
Delightful scene Greg, this must have been a very rewarding trip, hope we get to see more from your travels! Thank you so much for sharing
Amazing animals and sound like you were very lucky to see them. I can't see any strong shadows here so I'm guessing the animals were either in shade or the sun was behind cloud. As such, I'd called the light excellent here and certainly my favourite for photography. The animals do look better and the frame generally in Gabriela's repost although I can't comment on the colour either. The tight framing works for me in this shot. Detail looks excellent and the moment of capture was great too with the elephant on the left dragging its legs down the bank. Nice one.
Thanks all for the comments. It was an interesting sighting, I am thinking about posting a sequence of the stages of the crossing from one side to the other, some really interesting behavior and teamwork was required.
Borneo pigmy elephants
And maybe not the best light, but you did expose very well - nice work in the field!
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