KBB splash

[greg cowle]

This gorgeous Kamchatka Brown Bear was chasing salmon in Kuril Lake, August this year.
1/2500, f4.5, ISO800, Canon 1DX2 and 4OO2.8II
Greg

[haseeb badar]

Hi Greg -- I really liked this one, great action , timing and expression. I liked the details in your subject and inspite of the wet fur sharpness doesnt look crunching. The low POV also helps. Regarding the tech, I feel you could have opted for higher ISO and also stopped down to atleast 5.6. SS is good enough but considering such fast action, the higher the better.

Nicely done.

TFS !

[Steve Kaluski]

A nice leaping shot Greg and being low has created a great POV. Like the overall colour palette, but surprised the Bear is such a saturated brown compared to say the Alaskan bears. I would suggest in darkening the FG and loose the lump in the bottom RHC. Sharpness looks OK, but would drop the % on the water, it looks over sharp and that is just down to highlights and how sharpening works using high & low frequency. With the 1DX MKII ISO is history and so I agree with Haseeb, a bit more DoF for the nose and perhaps 1/3200 just to nail the action and it would not hurt the IQ.

Don't forget to add your thoughts to other posted images, we suggest 3-5.

TFS
Steve

[greg cowle]

Thanks for the comments Haseeb and Steve. For me this is about the bear surrounded by the splash, before she put her head in the water. I am pretty happy with the settings here, although I understand your suggestions. We were shooting in different directions, depending on where the action broke and all you had time to do was spin and shoot, and the shutter speed was good to keep the ISO in a good range. I prefer shallow depth of field more generally than others, but 4.5 is good here to have the bear sharp from nose to shoulders, equally important wide enough to achieve a creamy background for the far bank. Obviously I need to me very accurate with the focus point with this preference, that is my challenge...
The colors of these bears go through a dramatic range from blond to dark brown. This female stood out from the crowd with her reddish-brown coat, I may have brought it out a little with the temperature and curves, but like the end result of the colors of the overall frame.
Thanks again, Greg

[Steve Kaluski]

Hi Greg, thanks for replying back, good to extend dialog and thinking.

I am pretty happy with the settings here, although I understand your suggestions.

Compare to the old school of thinking ie 500mm lens SS 1/500, you should be working on a minimum of 2x, 500mm lens SS 1/1000. With the launch 1DX MKII it re wrote the books and so keeping low ISO is a thing of the past. Agree the you had good SS, but from the posting the nose doesn't appear sharp and so gaining a bit more DoF would have been better, however I do agree that from the eye to the shoulder it is sharp. Going to say f/5.6 or even 7.1 would have still provided that 'creamy' BKG you have, partially through distance between subject and the background, plus the compression of a very fast lens. The issue you have if if the bear is running towards you, if you shoot with a shallow DoF, within a few meters of it taking off you will runout of DoF and everything has to work a lot faster as the subject get closer, so it's always better to have more when you start.

Obviously I need to me very accurate with the focus point with this preference, that is my challenge...

LOL Greg, yep we all try for that, but again, using the correct FP(s) to help you lock on and selecting the correct Case are all designed to obtain the critical capture.

Cheers
Steve

[Morkel Erasmus]

A really pleasing image, love the splashes and the brown offset with the bright water.
Some good technical points have been covered already. More DOF would have been nice, and the sharpness of the water can be toned down.
Eager to see more from this scene - nice low POV adds here.

[John Mack]

Very nice. Like everything about this one. Splashing water is great and it doesn't cover the bear's eye. Nice low angle.

[Basil Dardagan]

Cheepers this is good !!! WOW !! What incredible action and the focused look on the animals face has me mesmerized. IMHO I am not 100% sure that toning down the sharpness of the water splash would improve the image

[greg cowle]

Thanks Basil. I like the splash as it is, although I understand others may process their own differently.

[Mike Diersing]

Love the sharpness of the water droplets and the contrast of the cinnamon brown fur against the white water. For me the framing is spot on. I wonder if you could increase contrast or dehaze just a bit for added pop.

[Giovanni Frescura]

I like it a lot..very dinamic and good position! Also for me more contrast. Have to tried to turn horizontally the photo ?

[greg cowle]

Giovanni, thanks for the comment, I had not thought about portrait format, I'll take a look and see.