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At the waterhole
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At the waterhole

by Vincent Grafhorst

Gallery: WildlifePosted May 24, 2011195 views12 comments
This was a memorable afternoon, not so much for the sightings, which were pretty ordinary, but rather for the lighting situation. The sun was still high and normally I would not even have bothered to unpack my camera at that time of day, but the approaching storm clouds filtered the light and produced a stark blue sky in the BG creating a unique set of conditions. I wish there were more such kind of days in a year! :cool:

Nxai Pan NP, Botswana
Camera Model Canon EOS-5D Mark II
Shutter Speed 1/400 Sec.
Aperture Value f/10.0
ISO Speed 200
Lens EF100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS USM @ 260mm
Beanbag
Slight crop from top & bottom

Comments

12 comments
Comment posted by Ken Watkins on May 24, 2011 at 11:53 AM
I love this reminds me of the all to rare days (nowadays) when you could take this sort of sky for granted in Botswana.
Almost a mirror image here, wonderful.
Registered on December 15, 2010, 1537 Posts, 4877 Comments
Comment posted by Richard Teller on May 24, 2011 at 1:28 PM
The light in the image is very good and gives it an interesting feel. the two elephants must be related, they look like they are greeting each other. Nice dof and comp with the Zebras.
Registered on August 23, 2010, 1162 Posts, 6692 Comments
Comment posted by Jim Hackley on May 24, 2011 at 6:32 PM
That sky really adds to the image and interesting that there are not any clouds within the dark sky background. The overall composition with placement of the elephants in the water hole works great for me and I like seeing the other animals in the background, like they are waiting there turn to get near the water. Well done, the larger image looks great.
Registered on September 17, 2009, 302 Posts, 5535 Comments
Comment posted by Anand Narayanan on May 24, 2011 at 8:24 PM
The bloated one on the right has to stop drinking !! Its going to explode :jump: :jump:
Registered on October 25, 2009, 110 Posts, 835 Comments
Comment posted by Carol Nichols on May 24, 2011 at 10:27 PM
Quite an amazing photo Vincent. The positions of the elephants is very grand. I love the gray against the dark blue sky and the black and white zebras behind the gray elephants. It makes for an elephant photo that is very different from the usual elephant photo. A feast for my eyes. :toast:
Registered on November 7, 2007, 161 Posts, 1420 Comments
Comment posted by Lon Sharp on May 24, 2011 at 11:14 PM
Your beautiful low perspective makes them seem unusually immense. Sweeeeeeet light.
Registered on December 9, 2007, 258 Posts, 9892 Comments
Comment posted by Jagdeep Rajput on May 25, 2011 at 8:04 AM
Great setting against blue sky !
I really like the Zebra under the right elephant, may crop out the half Gazelle on the RHS.
Jagdeep Rajput
Registered on April 29, 2008, 686 Posts, 2857 Comments
Comment posted by Ashley Vincent on May 26, 2011 at 11:52 PM
What a terrific shot Vincent! I love the way the low angle of view combined with the presence of the proportionally smaller Zebras and Gazelles amplify the immense size of these magnificent Elephants; really goes a long way toward reminding us that these giants are in fact the largest creatures to walk our earth.

Although I completely understand if you're absolutely against this kind of thing yourself, if this were mine I would definitely clone out the half-a-Gazelle on the RH side of the frame; aside from it being a bit of a distraction, I think it's removal would then accentuate further the pleasing tapering-off effect that the larger Zebra (partially obscured by the Elephant's tail on the right) graduating down to the slightly smaller one further to the right of the frame and onto the even smaller Gazelle with it's head down creates.

A minor nit I have to admit, just offering an opinion based on personal preference :^)
Registered on March 1, 2011, 154 Posts, 2083 Comments
Comment posted by Morkel Erasmus on May 28, 2011 at 5:09 PM
I love how this turned almost ethereal with the conditions Vincent...the foreground really pops against that sky, and the light is nicely diffused.

Nxai is an area I would still love to visit...
Registered on March 22, 2011, 385 Posts, 2068 Comments
Comment posted by Harshad Barve on May 30, 2011 at 9:56 PM
very nicely done
Registered on July 25, 2010, 39 Posts, 210 Comments
Comment posted by Upjeet Singh on June 4, 2011 at 4:41 AM
I love this image Vincent, specially because of the blue sky and contrast with the elephants. Yes agreed cropping of gazelle would add to the image. Love the colors of the image, sharpness and the 2 bulls.

Fantastic :toast:
Registered on May 8, 2010, 50 Posts, 55 Comments
Comment posted by Ruben Vicente on June 9, 2011 at 10:32 AM
Stunning photo. Love the composition and the light.
Registered on April 9, 2011, 4 Posts, 59 Comments