Nature Photographers Network
This is the preserved archive of the original Nature Photographers Network. The community continues at naturephotographers.network.
Just a Growin' Boy #4
‹ PreviousWildlife GalleryNext ›

Just a Growin' Boy #4

by Peter Cross

Gallery: WildlifePosted June 8, 2012147 views3 comments
I'd missed Barney on the last several visits to the nature area. The deer have shifted their behavior and appear to be in hiding in the morning. But in the evening they come out and cross the entrance road to the nature center and go to a large area of mown grass. I'm guessing it's 30-40 acres. As the native vegetation is drying up due to a lack of rain (probably won't rain again until fall), they only need cross the street to this watered and highly nutritious food source. All the deer except for Barney entered from one point. Barney just had to do it his way. Although not the best photo for viewing his growing antler (I'll post a closeup in the comments section), I just got kick out of all the signs which he was ignoring. Although this is a pretty much a man altered environment, the deer here are all wild deer. I just capture the normal behavior (which granted is somewhat different than many areas). I did a bit of cloning on a bright piece of foliage, warmed the white balance, and sharpened for the web. Comments and critiques welcome and encouraged.

Tech info

Canon 60D with 70-200mm f/4L @ 200mm plus 1.4 TC = 280mm
1/160th @ f/5.6 and ISO 800
tripod

Comments

3 comments
Comment posted by Peter Cross on June 8, 2012 at 1:23 AM
Okay, here's a tightly cropped image of Barney which shows pretty well how his antlers have continued to grow since my last post. I found another buck almost as big which looks like might be his main competition come fall. For now, they are happy to feed together. This crops leaves a lot to be desired quality wise but does the job of tracking his development.
Registered on April 3, 2010, 271 Posts, 1342 Comments
Comment posted by John Tobias on June 8, 2012 at 10:28 AM
Granted the environment you caught Barnny is not the best, but still a good shot of his antler growth. Thanks for sharing, looking forward to the next one.
Registered on September 12, 2009, 2120 Posts, 6455 Comments
Comment posted by Lon Sharp on June 9, 2012 at 11:07 PM
Keep us posted, he is going to be one fine specimen of big buck.
Registered on December 9, 2007, 258 Posts, 9892 Comments