Paws in the air

[Morkel Erasmus]

From a memorable sighting in Mana Pools, Zimbabwe.
Low angle came from lying flat on my belly in a sandy riverbed. This male eventually came to within 5 meters of us and lay down completely relaxed.

Techs:
Nikon D3s
Nikkor 500mm f4 VR with 1.4x TC (@700mm)
f7.1 | 1/250 SS | ISO-4000

Wish I'd pushed SS higher and let ISO run to 12800 - this was in 2012 so processing the ultra high ISO images as still a challenge even on the legendary D3s

[Andreas Liedmann]

Hi Morkel ... i do remember your stories around this very well , I was very fascinated at that time .
Good to see that stuff again .
I do like the overall image for its tones , colors and for the exciting subject . Looking like a ballerina ....
Such low POV is really priceless and I love it .
If you have a loser crop might work even better

TFS Andreas

[Steve Kaluski]

Remember this well Morkel and the D3s is no slouch in terms of Camera bodies, it's still a legend!

Low POV works although I'm not a lover of the OOF bar in the FG, but it is what it is.... The dainty 'tip toe' is nice along with the nose down, smelling the air. I would reprocess the image with the latest software as the techs are classic, but the image will look far more polished and will bring out more of what you original captured. Adding the new NR will address the shooty/contrasty look and help the BKG overall.

Note we are now posting 1920px wide or 1600px high. hopefully we will see some new stuff with the Sony?

TFS
Steve

[Gabriela Plesea]

Hello Morkel and good to see you back, it's been a while!

And yes, D3S...the King of Noise...how I loved that camera, indeed a legend. This image looks good for 2012... Subject in great shape and the blood on its neck as well as full tummy tells us he's been eating nicely...

Good POV, love the pose. Tempted to lighted the eye just a tad. Overall exposure looks good, nice detail. Love the BG but not so sure about the FG. Lovely natural colours.

Looking forward to see more from you, and... err... I see Steve mentioned Sony - have you left the 'dark side' ?

Kind regards,

[Jonathan Ashton]

A fine shot, I would suggest lowering the brightness of the base

[Morkel Erasmus]

Thanks for the comments and suggestions, folks.
I did reprocess this with new LR, Steve, though I did not apply the new "denoise" to it.
Will play with lowering brightness of the FG sand.

Gabriela - merely testing some Sony gear out on recent trips. I have not yet purchased new gear for myself and am still evaluating my options in the new mirrorless landscape.

[Steve Kaluski]

I did reprocess this with new LR, Steve, though I did not apply the new "denoise" to it.

Morkel, Lr has come on in leaps & bounds since last you processed, but now you must follow the steps initially, otherwise it will bite you in the rear. The forthcoming developments will open the door to massive manipulation of images, but the 'Genie' is now out of the bottle and AI is defiantly here both in camera& in PP.

[Morkel Erasmus]

True Steve - I guess I have to "relearn" a workflow with the new tools at my disposal.
I've seen the AI developments and yes, think the "genie is out of the bottle" and it will be very hard in future to know if someone captured it "in-camera".

[Steve Kaluski]

The raw has to be the ‘go too’ element, if there is a question raised, as it always has been, but even more crucial now.

[Morkel Erasmus]

Agreed - at least for contests you cannot avoid the "submit RAW file" element anymore (if any of the noteworthy contests were doing it).
Wonder if local camera club judging will also have to revert to this route...

[Steve Kaluski]

Camera clubs, you must be joking. I gave up years ago with the Royal Photographic Society and their POVs… but that’s another story!

[Morkel Erasmus]

Oh I also left the PSSA clubs long ago because of their cliques and rigid judging, especially for someone who likes to shoot "out the box" often.