I created this image yesterday morning in the woods along Ottawa's Old Quarry trail. The white-tail does there are quite tame because of the many people who frequent the woods (a few even bring food for them).
During the rutting season the big bucks appear and although they are wary of humans, they continue to court the does. If you're patient you can get some close-ups of the bucks. This fellow never let the doe that he hooked up with get farther then 20-30 feet away from him. I always made sure the she was between him and I! :D
Canon 40D, Sigma 50-500mm at 363mm mounted on BushHawk. ISO 640, F6.3, 1/80 sec. No Flash
Cropped to about 75% of full frame.
Hi Steve I like how you framed it between the two more prominent trees, a merge with either would have been problematic. I like the selected crop and pose, sure is keeping and eye on you !!! You do great with that setup!!
Stephen, I too like the framing but the lack of sharpness due to the shooting conditions distracts. I certainly understand the difficulties in making these images after having spent a week in OK after deer, elk and bison.
Stephen,
I agree with previous comments. Considering that you were down to 1/80 sec, you have done a good job. At times I use BushHawk with my 300mm+1.4 TC i.e. at 420 mm and I am happy with the sharpness.
Thank you Al, Robert and Sabyaschi. Robert and Sabyaschi you're correct about the sharpness. I'm sure that I could work on selective sharpening the head to improve this image a bit.
The lighting conditions in the forest were less than ideal but my perhaps excitement (a touch of "Buck fever"?) didn't help me keep the lens steady enough. The buck was moving up the trail towards me at the time that I created this image. His doe had already passed by in front of me. I wanted to capture the image but, at the same time, stay our of his way when he was with his lady love. ;- )
What a healthy looking big boy - check out the thickness of that neck. Thanks for showing me the area...I'll have to make it back out there before they lose their antlers :-) That molting Snowshoe Hare was quite the treat too!
Hi Stephen,
I like the comp, head turn, light and colors. Also like that wide open eye. A touch soft but impressive for that shutter speed. I've had what I consider good results with my 40D at high ISOs (although that's a subjective thing). I think this would work well as a vertical crop to just inside the left tree as well. And I also have trouble keeping the lens steady when I'm watching the wildlife :)
Steve