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Thread: Necessary evil

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    Default Necessary evil

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    I did think about this one for the November theme, but the poor animal now has no horns, at least not much left of them. Sad but true that for their own survival, this black rhino in Namibia has had to suffer the indignity. I'd love to have had a shot with full horns but am happy with this as I think it's is a good reminder of the plight of these animals and the uncertain future they face. A little off all sides for this crop, mostly left, top and right.

    As usual, thank you for looking and sharing any comments you may have.

    Technical: Canon 80D with Lens EF100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM at 400mm handheld. Manual exposure 1/1600, f5.6, ISO 500 (normally I'd have used a smaller aperture but accidentally set it here). Processed in Canon DPP 4 (digital lens optimiser @ 50, Sharpness = 3, crop, lighting adjustments, default NR) then exported 16 bit TIFF to Photoshop Elements. Modest Neat Image NR applied to animal and stronger to rest of frame. Sharpened animal only (sharpness function: remove Gaussian blur, radius = 0.3 or 0.4 pixels, 50%) after final size reduction.

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    Lifetime Member Rachel Hollander's Avatar
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    Hi Glenn - Looks like beautiful light. It's a shame that the horns need to be cut but if it saves the animal I'm all for it. I like the placement in frame and the pose. I think you can bring out a little more detail and tonal depth by boosting the midtones slightly. Nice one.

    TFS,
    Rachel

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    BPN Member Andreas Liedmann's Avatar
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    Hi Glenn always special to see this species , that location is a good place to see them at times .
    The gorgeous light is typical for that place ...even if being crowded , only the white stones there can be sometimes problematic .
    Lovely side profile and the colors and tones looking good to me , sad to see the cut off horns , i am with you on that .
    Crop works well and i think you had enough DOF so no problem for me in this case with the aperture .

    Well the NR ...up to you

    TFS Andreas

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    Wildlife Moderator Steve Kaluski's Avatar
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    Hi Glenn, would echo the above comments, my only input would be to flip the image. It has no detriment to the image, but for me, the subject sits better in frame.

    BTW we tend not to disclose any location info with regard to Rhino postings, also if your camera has GPS then if you can remove it from the Exif data would be great.

    TFS
    Steve

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    Quote Originally Posted by Steve Kaluski View Post
    BTW we tend not to disclose any location info with regard to Rhino postings, also if your camera has GPS then if you can remove it from the Exif data would be great.
    Thanks Steve. No GPS and no EXIF included with my image so should be no issue there. As for location description, I was aware of this from a private exchange with Rachel. I figured 'Namibia' was not going to give too much away. Hope that is sound logic.

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    Hi Glenn -- What a beautiful light and sad to see the missing horns but it has served its purpose so far. These are magnificent creatures and you have done enough justice in showcasing this individual. Flipping the image might be a good option as suggested by Steve. Some nice suggestions as well reg boosting the midtones. But a very nice image as presented .

    TFS !

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    Story Sequences Moderator and Wildlife Moderator Gabriela Plesea's Avatar
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    Dear Glenn,

    Lovely capture of this superb animal in beautiful light. I like the POV, pose, and the slightly raised head from the subject. Very well exposed and nice detail (although I do agree with Rachel, you could extract more if you want to). One does not often come across this species out in the open as they like to browse among bushes and shrubs - so a very special frame IMO.
    Colours are great, sharpness is there in good measure. Composition works for me, but I also think you should flip it Very nice work - you should be very pleased with this

    Despite potential benefits of dehorning it still saddens me to see just about every rhino like this. They are less of a temptation for poachers but completely defenceless against predators. Conservation efforts are in place (and some amazingly enthusiastic and committed people) but still a struggle to protect them in my country, so many policies in place to curb poaching but we have more poachers than rangers.

    Sorry Glenn, I am going off topic here... Love your image, very well done!

    Kind regards,
    Gabriela Plesea

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    Thank you all for your comments. I take your point, Gabriela, about vulnerability of de-horned animals to predators although not sure if much research backs this up as I think a predator may work out what animal it is and its general condition rather than observe whether it has horns or not before trying to take it on. I'm not sure many predators would taken them on in the first place?

    As for flipping, apologies for not addressing that earlier. It personally makes no difference to me but happy to accept some of you might find the image more pleasing flipped.

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