Help me, Help me!!!!!

[Stu Bowie]

Just returned from 6 days in Botswana, and one of the highlights of my trip was to witness this, right in front of me. A pride of lion cubs had caught this Banded Mongoose, and this particular cub played with it like a rag doll. This was the end of the sequence after about five minutes of torture for the poor mongoose. The cub had already swatted the poor mongoose around, held it on the ground with her paws, and fought back every time the poor mongoose got a chance to try and 'fight back'. In this, I seemed to have captured the right angle as the poor mongoose seemed to look straight at me for help. I was dissappointed with the light, so I didnt have the best ss to capture sharp detail, but am happy with the result. Soon after this frame, the cub ended the fight, and put the mongoose out of its misery. I blended in some tyre marks beneath the cub.

Canon 50D
100-400 @ 190mm
1/200
F/5.6
ISO 640

Exp Comp 0
Hand held from an open vehicle.

[Rachel Hollander]

Stuart - welcome back. This tells a great story, a big cat with its squeaky toy, just like a house cat. Colors look good and the mongoose certainly seems to be looking right at you. You should be happy with the result. Well done. Looking forward to seeing more from your trip.

TFS,
Rachel

[Steve Kaluski]

Hi Stuart, nice one, was this a takeaway for one? Certainly the mongoose does look rather pitiful, was it a lucky escape at the end?

What I might suggest is an inverted S Curve at about 70%, reduce the contrast by say -7 and some H/S around the lioness head, just brings out a bit more detail IMHO. Let me know what you think. Oh, and clone the wee dot on the tail of the lioness.

Hopefully I see some more before some R&R.

TFS
Steve

[Morkel Erasmus]

Seems like it was a thrilling sighting Stu...albeit very sad for the mongoose.
I like the effect of the soft light, the DOF, and the 'perfect' pose of the mongoose.

You certainly are one of the people I've seen who can deliver wonders with that 100-400mm lens...

[Stu Bowie]

Thanks a stack for the feedback and comments guys. Here is my attempt with Steve's suggestions.

[Morkel Erasmus]

Looks even better :)

[Dumay de Boulle]

Repost looks great...Like the IQ and the moment is well captured. Sounds like you had a great time. Good to have you back.

[Grace Scalzo]

What a powerful image, Stuart. Nature at work, still feel bad for the mongoose. Your image tells the story perfectly.

[Marc Mol]

Great story told here Stuart, reflected in the desperation on that little guys face, well portrayed, repost looks an improvement here also.
TFS

[Stu Bowie]

Thanks a stack for the kind words and feedback.

[Tom Redd]

Stuart, what a shot! I love the capture, although painful, of the plight of the mongoose. The repost takes this over the top, a powerful image! Congrats.

[Steve Canuel]

Hey Stuart,
This shot certainly triggers a reaction. Hard to be on hand to watch an animal's life actually ending, especially the cuter, more endearing ones (although that can certainly be subjective). Repost improvements are subtle but make a nice difference.

[Roman Kurywczak]

Welcome back Stuart and a great image for the return! I think the repost tweaks were just right! Very nicely done!

[DanWalters]

Great timing! Love the face of the mongoose.

[Stu Bowie]

Thanks a stack for all the comments. Always appreciated.

[Harshad Barve]

Bhai

This should be another winner at BBC next year if they are H*&^st

AWESOMEEEEEEEEEE

TFS

[Paul Taylor]

I have to feel so, so sorry for the mongoose that it took me a while to view it properly as a photograph (your fault for making it so, so forlorn looking). Excellent picture and the repost really help to do it justice. I think the detail is more than enough given what else there is to appreciate here.

[Robert Amoruso]

Stuart,

I would go back to the original post and lighten the face and perhaps to a lesser degree lighten the hole image. Contrast was AOK IMO.

The look on the mongoose is killer - certainly for him it was.

[Stu Bowie]

Thank a stack for the kind words. Always appreciated.