Just Passing By

Gallery: WildlifePosted December 26, 2011216 views4 comments

Thought I would check out the deer at the nature area today and arrived just a bit after sunrise. Another frosty morning with only a few wisps of fog. Pretty quiet early on but finally connected with a few bunches of deer. This buck was with a group of does and a couple of other bucks but he was the only one that gave me some clear space. He decided to pass by me and catch up with a few of the does and was moving at a good pace and actually getting closer. I was havving a hard time recomposing, etc. with cold fingers and turned him into a quadraplegic in the photo. Oh, well. Other that that, I was pleased with this one. Although a very busy packground I got pretty decent separation on his antlers on the BG tree. Didn't do much with the image other than a small adjustment of the white balance and cloning out a branch coming out of his nostril. Looks much better without it. Comments and critiques appreciated. As an aside, I was trying out the tripod collar I got for Christmas and what a difference it makes on the balance and handling of the camera when mounted on a tripod. WAAAY better!

Technical info

Canon 60D with 70-200mm f/4L at 140mm
1/400th @ f/4.0 and ISO 800
tripod
full frame

Comments

4 comments

Comment posted by Gary Gulash on December 26, 2011 at 11:28 PM

Pleasant setting with nice colors. Impressive buck, you did well having the antlers backed by the even grey tone of the tree trunk. I personally rarely use a tripod when using my 70-200, it just gets in the way.

It's a small enough lens (even the 2.8 version) to hand hold, giving more freedom of movement - hopefully avoiding those cut off leg situations.

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

Comment posted by Peter Cross on December 27, 2011 at 12:29 AM

Gary, thanks for the comment. I know what you mean regarding use of a tripod. It's great when the deer are holding tight and I have the time to compose. When they're on the move, it is more difficult to track them and make adjustments. I've been telling myself lately to take the camera off the tripod when that happens. They're not called a quick release plates for nothing.

Registered on April 3, 2010, 271 Posts, 1342 Comments

Comment posted by John Tobias on December 27, 2011 at 9:17 AM

Peter, nice image of this buck. I like the pose, color and the detail you have captured. I'm not too concerned over the missing feet, you know they are there! The larger image does show where you cloned out the branch, I would suggest re-doing it.

Thanks for sharing a nice deer photo.

Registered on September 12, 2009, 2120 Posts, 6455 Comments

Comment posted by Brad Hill on December 29, 2011 at 8:34 AM

Hi Peter,

That's a fine specimen. I think your choice of shooting at f4 here was a good one - there are a lot of "things" in the background to attract one's eye and by softening them up with the shallow depth of field the buck stands out quite nicely. I agree with there being a bit of a problem on the positioning of the buck in the frame - but while I would like the bottom of the frame to include the feet, I actually find that bright zone on the top of the frame a bit more overwhelming and distracting than cutting the feet off.

Cheers...thanks for sharing this...

Brad

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