Love in soft winter light ....

[Andreas Liedmann]

Hi folks this time a behavior shot from the Grey Seals of Helgoland .
As usual for the bulls ....they grab a female and show them who is bigger and stronger to make the life cycle of the seals complete , or better said keep the lice cycle going.
Very soon after the female has given birth, they will be served by the bulls ....
In this case he chased her away from the pup , to take his right to mate with her .
Hope you like it

Canon EOS 1Dx
EF 70 - 200 IS L II at 200 mm
HH

F 7,1 ; Iso 640 ; 1/1000 sec ; man exp

Processed with C1 and PS CC 2018 ; slight crop and leveled

Wish the head was not that much intersecting with the dune line , i would have preferred the dune top running more through the neck ( with hindsight ) .

Thanks for looking and commenting to my previous thread .

Cheers Andreas

[Jonathan Ashton]

Andreas there's not an awful lot wrong with this image from where I am looking
Andreas - looks pretty good from here, colours and tones look super. She seems to be more enthusiastic than he does in fact it looks like a chore to him!

[haseeb badar]

Hi Andreas -- You are in rocking form ! Terrific details and fantastic moment, well timed ! Agree with your self critique regarding intersection with dunes but all in all a fantastic image and not to forget, the light is beautiful as well.

TFS !

[Rachel Hollander]

Hi Andreas - I think this most recent trip has resulted in your best images from a content and light perspective. This is really nice with rich tones, colors and details. I agree with your self critique about the dune intersecting the head but not a deal breaker.

TFS,
Rachel

[Steve Kaluski]

Think you are getting all 'soft' Andreas with all these 'affectionate' behavioural images.

Colours look very realistic, nice low POV, might have liked a tad more space to the RHS and certainly you could have afforded some more SS with all the movement that was going on without any issue for the 1DX.

TFS
Steve

[Andreas Liedmann]

Thanks Jon , Rachel, Haseeb and Steve for your kind comments , as always much appreciated.

Jon - from my experience and subjective opinion the females never look happy when it comes to mating . Always trying to escape , but very seldom they do have a chance the bull is just too strong . The only thing that helps is another bull that comes into play ...then they can escape for a short time.

Rachel - this time it was very different on all counts , and i liked it very much from the pure photography point . I almost forgot the hazzle with some volunteer folks. What i miss is a rough fight between the bulls , i have seen some short ones but nothing as spectacular as last year . Would have loved to get that this year , in some nice light and a better BG than 2016. But ....give it a try later in the year , maybe the presence of the british gentlemen helps.We never know!

Steve - i agree with you about the SS , with hindsight . Actually i had plenty of time to change in the field ....but forgot about it. Was just busy with changing positions and look for the framing. Regarding the softness ...of all you folks . Just wait and be a bit more patient...i will kill you softly with a " special" . I bet not often seen .... and for sure not posted . At least i am excited to share these images , but still need to wait for official proof . Do not want to show something that might be not the truth ....if i do not get the proof , for whatever reason i will post and just say what i think. So .. more to come.

Cheers Andreas

[Marc Mol]

Very nice behavioural moment well captured here Andreas, the rich tones, colour and lighting all working together nicely.

TFS

[Gabriela Plesea]

Stunning behavioural capture Boetie and I cannot wait to see the "special"

Regarding mating and happiness, things appear a little rough here but I guess it's a seal thing: the female is about to give this male a little bite, note the blood on her muzzle and his cheek.

Subjects well placed within the frame, superb colours and textures, nice HA from both. Don't mind the male's head slightly intersecting top of the dune.

Well done Andreas, your seal images never disappoint... I took great pleasure viewing, as always!

Warmest regards from your African Sister

Thanks Jon , Rachel, Haseeb and Steve for your kind comments , as always much appreciated.

Jon - from my experience and subjective opinion the females never look happy when it comes to mating . Always trying to escape , but very seldom they do have a chance the bull is just too strong . The only thing that helps is another bull that comes into play ...then they can escape for a short time.

Rachel - this time it was very different on all counts , and i liked it very much from the pure photography point . I almost forgot the hazzle with some volunteer folks. What i miss is a rough fight between the bulls , i have seen some short ones but nothing as spectacular as last year . Would have loved to get that this year , in some nice light and a better BG than 2016. But ....give it a try later in the year , maybe the presence of the british gentlemen helps.We never know!

Steve - i agree with you about the SS , with hindsight . Actually i had plenty of time to change in the field ....but forgot about it. Was just busy with changing positions and look for the framing. Regarding the softness ...of all you folks . Just wait and be a bit more patient...i will kill you softly with a " special" . I bet not often seen .... and for sure not posted . At least i am excited to share these images , but still need to wait for official proof . Do not want to show something that might be not the truth ....if i do not get the proof , for whatever reason i will post and just say what i think. So .. more to come.

Cheers Andreas

[Andreas Liedmann]

Thank you Gabriela ....your feedback is appreciated

Not long to wait for the special , will call folks and see what they tell me . After that i just post ..regardless of their answer .
Will start in " your forum " , but keep the best frames for single posting in here .

Kind regards Andreas

[Mike Poole]

Great interaction here Andreas, and the added interest in the BG adds to the shot for me. Even got blue sky in December - whatever next!

Mike