Sushi

Gallery: WildlifePosted December 20, 2011614 views7 comments

Sushi

Hey all,

This will be my last image post before the weekend and Christmas so just wanted to take the opportunity to wish you all a good and safe holiday season (and, dare I say, a Merry Christmas). I hope Photeus smiles upon all of you in 2012.

About this image: No offense intended to any culture in coming up with the title to this image - since being told that some sushi dishes contain raw fish I've been kind of off eating this cuisine style, but I have no trouble with those - human or otherwise - that enjoy it. Apparently this beautiful grizzly bear is quite fond of it! Shot in October during my photo tour into the Great Bear Rainforest.

My Christmas gift to you? NO uber-long commentary with this one!

Subject: Female Grizzly (Urus arctos) enjoying a dinner of sushi
Location: Great Bear Rainforest, BC, Canada
Camera: Nikon D3s
Lens: Nikkor 400mm f/2.8 VRII lens - handheld from floating Zodiac. VR on and in "Normal" mode.
Exposure: 1/320s at f4. ISO 1400. -1.0 stop compensation from matrix metered exposure.
Crop: Moderate - this is only about 80% of full-frame vertical capture

By the way, if anyone actually wants, there is a fairly different commentary associated with this image on my website - it's about how some of my ethical beliefs in capturing and processing images have influenced how my image processing skills have evolved over the last 5 or so years. And it's about how learning some new processing techniques can help you keep your ethical standards intact! It, and all the gory details about this shot (processing details, conservation, etc.) can be seen right here

http://www.naturalart.ca/galleries/latest/.

Comments and critiques welcomed - probably best to view the larger version prior to doing so!

Cheers...thanks for looking...and once again - have a great end-of-year!

Brad

Comments

7 comments

Comment posted by Verdon on December 20, 2011 at 5:38 PM

Happy holidays ,, what a great shot!!!

Registered on June 10, 2011, 147 Posts, 1444 Comments

Comment posted by Guy Runco on December 20, 2011 at 10:38 PM

Absolutely zero nits from me. Sharp as can be, love those claws. The dark bg works well, excellent post-processing work. Your bear shots are always top notch, but this one is just perfect. Happy Holidays!

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

Comment posted by Anand Narayanan on December 20, 2011 at 11:50 PM

Very engaging, as is typical of many of your bahavioural portraits. Love the twiching left ear and the possesiveness expressed by the way its holding on to the sushi

Have a great winter !

Registered on October 25, 2009, 110 Posts, 835 Comments

Comment posted by Lon Sharp on December 21, 2011 at 9:01 AM

Beautifully processed, Brad. Given the nice diagonals of the rocks, I think I would have preferred more emphasis on top...giving up some of the foreground reflection and moving the eyes to about the mid-line of the frame.

Registered on December 9, 2007, 258 Posts, 9892 Comments

Comment posted by Neil Rossmiller on December 21, 2011 at 10:09 AM

Happy Holidays, er...........Merry Christmas and Happy New Year, Brad.
Hard to tell what is PC these days, but I wish everyone well no matter what they observe.
I just retired from the ski photo biz, so I hope to partake here at NPN regularly again
Neil

PS. No nits from me.

Registered on October 30, 2009, 156 Posts, 749 Comments

Comment posted by William Bickle on December 21, 2011 at 4:23 PM

Hello Brad

Another Sweet Up Close Image. Has many things that are Very Appealing! Bright focused eyes, sun lit fringed head, And those Amazing Bear Claws !!!

Personally, I prefer some environment & Mayb Not so Tight . The Sushi brightness does distract me somewhat.

Thanks for Sharing. Ho Ho Ho

Bill

Registered on June 13, 2011, 183 Posts, 1702 Comments

Comment posted by John Launstein on December 28, 2011 at 2:45 AM

Hi Brad...I hope you had a wonderful Christmas with those dearest to you and you have a great start to 2012.

This image grabbed me as soon as you posted it but I haven't had much time to comment until now.

First off, slight understatement re: viewing the larger version! Wow! This is indeed a beautiful image, rich in texture, gorgeous tones and interest. Love the claws and view of the gill plate on the salmon(?)...really like seeing a few of the toe pads on the bear's right front foot, too. His(?) eyes are very enchanting and really hold my gaze. I also really like the OOF rocks behind telling enough of the coastal story without at all competing for attention, and the diagonal lines add visual interest and another dynamic graphical element.

Perfectly processed, as what seems to be always.

I really like this one.

Registered on April 5, 2011, 223 Posts, 1193 Comments