Don't Step on Me

[Bill Dix]

From Botswana last July. Lighting was tough, but I loved the scene.

Sony A7 ii, 24-105 @ 105 mm, ISO 10,000,1/2000@f/14, HH from Land Cruiser.

[Gabriela Plesea]

Dear Bill,

Hope you enjoyed Botswana? So glad you visited Africa and had some memorable sightings! Your little ele is indeed super cute, BTW he is about one year old (fits under mom's belly and still has those fine hairs on its back).

Light was a little harsh but IMO the subject is well exposed. Just curious, why you felt the need for F14 ?

Would like the ele to stand out more, perhaps you could tone down the brightness of the grasses in the BG and reduce clarity and texture to a degree, for a softer look.

Mom's foot (behind the little one) is a bit distracting, very dark and there's a blue cast on the toenail - easy fix if you like.

Sharpness looks good and colours natural. Good detail too. And yes I too love the scene, just find it a bit difficult to connect with the subject as he is looking down - do you perhaps have more from this sighting?

Please share with us more images from your trip, would love to see

Kind regards,

[Bill Dix]

Thanks Gabriela. I wondered how old the little one was, given the fuzz on his back and legs. In my initial processing I did considerable reduction in brightness of the grass, and easing of the shadows on the elephants. They were in mixed shadow in strong light, so it wasn't ideal. I do have other images but I don't think others are any better in terms of eye contact with the little one. I can't explain the f14, except to say: I rented the a7ii at the last minute so I could have long zoom (on my a1) and short zoom both in the truck without changing lenses. I didn't have much time to practice with it, and its controls were not set up quite the same as the a1, so when I was using the thumb wheel to change the exposure I think it inadvertently changed the ISO and aperture together somehow.

Here's one other frame, exhibiting some of the same issues.

[Gabriela Plesea]

Hello Bill,

This image is also very cute. Sweet little mouse, so tiny...yes he is just under a year old and still busy exploring the world around him
Never mind the F14, was just curious. I gathered it might have been a mistake. Had a similar problem recently with a new body, been pressing the wrong buttons...they are similar with the ones on the older bodies but thought I was being 'clever', assigned to them different functions

Back to your images, I think I prefer the wider view in this instance - just a pity about the OOF leaves on the RHS. If the grasses in the BG bother you there are ways and means to soften them a bit. I just feel that the second image works somehow better because it shows how tiny the baby ele is.

I still like it a lot, Bill, grass and leaves and all! Indeed very special What other animals did you see and photograph on this trip, some predators too? Can we see some more?

Hope you have a wonderful rest of the weekend,

Kind regards,

[Jonathan Ashton]

Bill very appealing images but the hide on the elephants looks a bit featureless in part, just wondering if it was hammered a bit with NR??

[Steve Kaluski]

Hi Bill, I like the fact Mum frames the little one and this also gives 'scale' the image. Yes NR is too aggressive leaving patches of blurred areas, highlighted by some finer detail and in fact there is truck loads of detail within the shot. I think Bill if the setting got screwed, the exposure wasn't great, therefore more NR applied. If shooting high ISO the image is perfectly exposed, even at ISO 10k minimal NR is require ie if Topaz then around 5, it was probably over 25 plus with sharpening over 40. PS is the best tool for any sharpening because it's dedicated.

If you have it, there needs to be more room at the foot on both images, the second is way too tight. The calf has some lovely endearing qualities/detail might be worth a revisit if you have the time. The calf looks around 6-8 months I think, but still retains the lovely wispy hair so perhaps only 6 months????

TFS
Steve

[Bill Dix]

Thanks everyone.

[Dorian Anderson]

The little one is so cute! Interesting to know how to age the young, so thank Gabriela for that. I agree with the previous comments about NR, but we all bump settings and shoot with the wrong numbers at some point! I also prefer the wider view as it show the size difference beautifully. Yes to more room at the bottom if you have it.

[Bill Dix]

Thanks Dorian