Bear reflection

Hi Neil, i think this scene is quite lovely. The peaceful nature of the bear in densely vegetated surroundings and the calm water works well. It does seem that there is a slight focus / camera shake issue though, just not quite sharp. It does give me the feeling that I could just hide away quietly and observe for ages

Cheers, James

lovely intimate scene you;ve captured here Neil, I also feel it is not quite as sharp as it could be though.

Very nice view. Simple, natural and effective.

Beautiful scene Neil. I also like the composition and the fact that the bear is doing its thing. Normally I would argue against a subject facing away from the camera, but in this case it works. Th bear does look a bit soft indeed, whereas the BG foliage looks sharp so I am not 100% sure whether that is a focus issue or a SS issue at this size.

Thanks you guys,
Just the comments I was expecting. This is just the opposite of Lukes turtle. Too little on the ISO,SS, Apeture and hand held
This is much better than previous renditions............As my Grandfather used to say "You just can't make chicken soup from chicken Poop".
I beleive this is destined for photo art!
Always trying to keep things interesting.

Neil

This is seriously one of my favorite bear images on here Neil. I truly believe the subject does NOT have to be looking at the camera to be a good image. Sure, some sharpening and some darkening of the rocks on the shoreline are needed but you've got a winner here IMO.

I think I love bears as much as dogs (and that's a lot of love). Great capture here, Neil! I like the way the bear is focused on the hunt (at least that's what it looks like he's doing). Yea maybe it's not too sharp, but the photo art thing isn't such a bad idea. It also looks slightly cool on the white balance. I like the image overall though.

Hi Neil,

Man, this one is SO close to being a show-stopper! I really like the tranquil setting and how the bear seems so relaxed and just doing his/her thing. But, the single thing that really drew me in was how the channel just beyond the bear slowly turns the corner and curves away from the bear - adds tremendous depth and interest to the shot. I do think that for this shot to work as well as it could it needs to be sharp from foreground to background (including the bear, of course) and it doesn't look to have that extra degree of sharpness needed to make it work. Still great to look at as is, but one where it's hard not to say "if only..."

Cheers...thanks for sharing this...

Brad

I agree the composition and light are stunning. The softness is the drawback. Did you try printing it?

Yes, I did print it 24 x 35 with a water color filter and it hangs in our living room and in our shop at the Resort. It has special meaning to me, but hasn't sold well. I'll continue to work on it when time permits and hopefully continue to improve upon it. I had about 15 seconds to prepare for the shot and would take my chances again knowing that sometimes you get lucky, the rest of the time you get some sort of soup!
Neil

This is a beautiful composition Neil! Yes, it may be little soft but it's such a nice scene that it makes me want to get back to Grizzly country as soon as spring arrives. Your photos really capture the beauty and "wildness" of Grizzly country and not merely the bears themselves. Thanks for posting this one.

I like this composition too. The softness of the bear is a small problem imo. What distracts me more are the bright rocks lrc. I'd try to tone those down or crop them out. A crop from the bottom looks like it wouldn't work since you'd loose the bears reflection. Rats.