Hello everyone. Thank you for all your comments and suggestions to my previous post, as always , much appreciated.
I will be posting a few images from a thrilling Tiger sighting at night time , which is pretty rare , especially to sight them and that too 3 tigers in total.
The image has great presence and the tiger is well rendered. I also think it is no mean feat to get a shot in the darkness. As you may guess I have a but........The eyes on the tiger look a little odd I suspect they are reacting to the torch light. I would have liked to have seen a slightly more even spread of light, I am not to keen on the "rabbit in the headlights" appearance.
Hi Haseeb, I'm not a lover of shots at night, especially when it's with subjects that have very sensitive eyes like owls, it's just wrong to me, but that should not reflect in my feedback and big cats I feel are OK.
No idea on the lighting and what/how it renders the image. If you used a flash then you have far more control and say 1/250 at f/7.1 may have created a better result, albeit I'm not a great user of flash, but fill-in flash would have worked here and may have rendered a more 'subtle' look????
The image appears a little soft, the eyes have an unusual colour, probably from the light and the blacks/shadows are heavily clipped. I do however like the pose/position of the Tiger and the fact the rear disappears into the dark of the night. Technically you have the grey mid point, but I feel this is where you need to start from and so the surroundings are not so 'cold', but that everything is warmer and you may feel changing Picture style may help to begin to get closer. Haseeb I've reduce the Blacks & Contrast, added some selective colour adjustment ie yellow and added a bit more saturation. I also feel in this instance adding a vignette draws the eye and creates more of that tunnel view you may have got using the light????
Thank you Jon and Steve , I really appreciate your comments and suggestions.
Well, it is a matter of personal preference but i find it quite intriguing to see and photograph animals at night especially if it is a big cat , coz they their behaviour is some what different at night time and also they appear more ferocious and mysterious at night time. I do tend to be careful while using the lights and hit them on their stomach mid region and also try not to overdo the lights and unnecessarily disturb them , being in their presence is what matters.
I like what you have done Steve in your RP , especially the touch of warmth adds to the image . I also did vignetting in the manner you suggested some time back. I am ok with the sharpening albeit it does appear a tiny bit on softer side but I am fine with it.
And agree with the appearance of eyes they had that slight glitter because of unsteadiness shown by the torch bearer and i tried to remove it.
I appreciate your suggestions and opinions as always.
Thanks Haseeb, I think we are both trying to be honest and to a degree, not wishing to be harsh, as we appreciate you trying to be different and like the approach.
Having experienced a number of sightings at night time I tend to agree with you, there's a completely different mood and a kind of mystery to those encounters when predators are involved. But like Steve I am not very fond of night photography and IMO using flash or spotlights should be avoided, especially with sensitive species. A controversial issue and unfortunately not enough research was done on the effect of artificial light on animals - I suppose a touch of fill light should be harmless in some situations, one should consider the animal response and act accordingly.
Back to your image, the pose (and eye contact) is great. Subject is very well positioned within the frame. The vignette works, it's not too strong and one can still see the surroundings. The face appears a little soft, especially muzzle. I like the warmth in Steve's RP and my guess is he adjusted WB as the colours look more natural. Regarding colour of the eyes , some animals have a membrane in their eyes called "tapedum lucidum" which can prevent strong light from hitting the blood rich retina. Different light spectrums are reflected from this membrane based on its chemical makeup, which varies from one species to the next (in this case green).
Very special sighting and I thank you for sharing with us, hope to see more from you
Hi Gabriela -- Thank you for your comments and suggestions, much appreciated. As far as i have experienced if not using fill flash and instead a spotlight is used then one should completely avoid hitting the light on their subjects eye, it just is very disturbing for the animal and also might be harmful as well. And instead try to soften the light and hit it on the chest or sideways to minimise the disturbance and also it should be not done for a long period just short burst of 2 to 5 secs. Just be satisfied what you managed to capture. Just enjoy the night sky and darkness , sounds of forest in presence of the animal.
And Thanks for the info reg the composition of eye membrane, indeed informative.
Hi Haseeb, I can imagine the excitement of the night sighting! Must have been eerie yet thrilling. I don’t mind the use of a flash light for a few secs and not pointing in the eyes as you say. Not an ideal and debatable approach but yeah even a I would have tried it in a special situation like this. Techs have been covered so I won’t comment on that. TFS.
Night Series I !
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