Strolling Caracal

[Morkel Erasmus]

This is one from an amazing sighting back in 2010 in the Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park.
This haggardly-looking female caracal walked beside our vehicle for about 2km before drinking from a nearby waterhole.
This was my 2nd sighting in one day, after recording zero caracal sightings in 28 years of annual safaris.
The light was horrendous (late-morning, 9AM)...but still worth a share IMHO

Techs:
Canon 7D with 100-400mm L IS USM @ 260mm
f7.1 @ 1/1000 SS @ ISO-400
full frame with a slight crop from the top

[Andreas Liedmann]

Hi Morkel,
super sighting and well worth to show here!!!
Good IQ under the circumstances,would like to be able to show it as mine.You handled the "harsh" light very well.I would change nothing at all.

Cheers Andreas

[Rachel Hollander]

Hi Morkel - I remember your other posts from this sighting. Harsh light well handled and adds to the story of the long walk for water. Love the one ear tuft up, one down.

TFS,
Rachel

[Harshad Barve]

Great sighting and very well done Morkelbhai
TFS

[Steve Canuel]

Certainly worth sharing and as others have noted, the light was handled well rendering a nicely detailed, yet not overly contrasty or washed out image. The droopy ear tuft certainly conveys a different mood than the usually alert look of this species.

[Ken Watkins]

Morkel,

Why is it when you get a rare sighting there are always problems with light, grass or BG?

Worth a try though and this is not bad given the circumstances

[Dumay de Boulle]

Always a nice sighting, she does look a little haggid. Good detail adn I think you did about as good as one can in the shooting conditions.

[Steve Kaluski]

Good detail adn I think you did about as good as one can in the shooting conditions.

Works for me, nice habitat, might just add a fraction of USM on the face, optional. Cool, Morkel.

TFS
Steve

[Russell Johnson]

Light well handled....I only have a couple of blurry night Caracal images.

[Vivaldo Damilano]

Morkel what a sighting, I have only seen them at a distance. Needs a bit more sharpening.

[Sid Garige]

That is one killer sighting for sure. Great job in hard lighting conditions.