REPOST Rock Climber

Gallery: WildlifePosted June 19, 2011137 views11 comments

Another from our recent Yellowstone trip. My family and I were on the way to West Yellowstone when we came to a huge bear jam! There was tons of people pulled off and walking into a thin patch of trees to get a better view of, and photogragh, this Cinnamon Black Bear which was across the river. After maybe 15 minutes of watching this bear forage for food and climb on some fallen trees, he started to make his way up these rocks.

This was my favourite picture of him mostly because of how all the gray surrounding him makes his colour really stand out, and how the rocks make the picture feel wild and rugged. I also really like his expression, but had to really work on his eyes as they were reflecting the gray sky and rocks in a very unique way...my dad and I did a double-take when we first saw how it looked! As you can see, it was raining when I took this picture and I also liked the way his wet fur looked, especially on his face.

Thanks for any comments or suggestions!

Nikon D300
Nikkor 300mm AF-S ED f/4 with 1.4TC
ISO 640
1/320sec @ f/5.6
monopod

Comments

11 comments

Comment posted by Guy Runco on June 19, 2011 at 3:43 PM

Very nice shot - the color of the rocks really makes the bear pop, the composition is great and the crop works well here.

Registered on September 9, 2008, 77 Posts, 705 Comments

Comment posted by Ken Archer on June 19, 2011 at 5:43 PM

W!!! This a wonderful black bear in very unusual looking habitat. The pano crop works well for me.

Excellent Work Jenaya

Ken Archer

Registered on October 28, 2004, 222 Posts, 6683 Comments

Comment posted by Mark Seaver on June 19, 2011 at 6:06 PM

The mottled gray rocks really make his color stand out. The rainy day also helps to keep the contrast under control. I find the pano shot to be confining. I'd like to see more room on the top.

Registered on January 23, 2011, 1103 Posts, 17270 Comments

Comment posted by Morkel Erasmus on June 19, 2011 at 7:13 PM

The bear really does stand out nicely Jenaya!
Lovely capture.

Registered on March 22, 2011, 385 Posts, 2068 Comments

Comment posted by Cam Held on June 19, 2011 at 11:24 PM

Nice shot Jenaya, the bear stands out nicely against the gray rocks! I agree with Mark though that it'd be nice to have a bit more room above or below the bear, although I also understand why you would choose a pano crop. Nice work!

Registered on November 12, 2009, 59 Posts, 398 Comments

Comment posted by Gary Gulash on June 20, 2011 at 1:40 AM

Hi Jenaya. Unique bear, unique setting for sure!!! As they say, it's "all good" regarding your photo. You could look at other crops, but it's a winner either way. I guess I'm a fan of moderate contrast in my photos, unless it really helps the particular photo to have the higher contrast. I would look at lifting the blacks a bit to even out the exposure a little bit. Just the way I see things, and "ain't necessarily right". BTW, would you ask your father if he would consider adopting me, I would really like to visit all the great photo locations you guys get to!

Registered on January 28, 2005, 879 Posts, 12098 Comments

Comment posted by SandyRichardsBrown on June 20, 2011 at 2:08 AM

Wonderful image!
The rocks are an unusual BG for the bears, and these really make the bear pop - as you noted.
I'd like to see other crops, though - I'm not sold on the pano here.
Sandy

Registered on November 24, 2003, 3937 Posts, 12909 Comments

Comment posted by Brad Hill on June 20, 2011 at 8:47 AM

Hi Jenaya,

Nicely done! I think you're absolutely right that the almost uniform grey-coloured rocks really make this bear stand out nicely. The out-stretched right front leg and the head turn also add a nice bit of action and life to the image. I'm not sure the pano crop adds a lot here and I find myself wishing for more room on top - curious about your reasoning for going with the pano?

Cheers...thanks for sharing this one...

Brad

Registered on May 29, 2007, 431 Posts, 6061 Comments

Comment posted by Shawn Turner on June 20, 2011 at 11:04 PM

Hey jenaya cool shoot, I really like the even tones of the background really makes the bear jump out, and people can have fun counting the triangles in this one... Lots. I would like to see more image on the bottom of the frame.
Good job

Cheers Shawn

Registered on June 5, 2011, 7 Posts, 19 Comments

Comment posted by Ashley Vincent on June 21, 2011 at 9:00 AM

A very striking image Jenaya and I really like the wet hair look too. Kind of intrigued to see what the unique look you caught in it's eyes looked like now that you've mentioned it, but without this thought in mind I simply thinking how great it was you managed to get catchlights in both eyes :^)

While I like the idea of this being presented as a pano, I think I'd prefer it if it were less extreme; i.e. if you hadn't cropped so much from either the top or the bottom, though of course this is more a matter of personal taste rather than something to try and get right.

Registered on March 1, 2011, 154 Posts, 2083 Comments

Comment posted by Jenaya Launstein on June 24, 2011 at 4:11 PM

Thanks for the comments everyone!

We added more room on the top and bottom like you suggested, I hope this is better!

Registered on February 8, 2011, 254 Posts, 1302 Comments