Herd on the move

Gallery: WildlifePosted September 5, 2012613 views5 comments

This large buffalo herd moving in the morning from the Chobe flood plains into the forest to feed provided some interesting opportunities. What you see is only a fraction of the herd, in total there were more than 300 at least (didn't bother to count

) and we were caught (in the place where this was shot from) in the middle of it. With all of the large individuals pausing to check us out, it took a while before they had all passed.

Cape Buffalo (Sincerus cafer)
Chobe NP, Botswana
Camera Model Canon EOS 1D Mark IV
Shutter Speed 1/160 Sec.
Aperture Value f/16.0
ISO Speed 400
Lens EF100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS USM @ 130mm
Beanbag
cropped to 4:2 from top & bottom.

Comments

5 comments

Comment posted by Kurt Bowman on September 5, 2012 at 4:23 PM

The light and comp and movement in this shot are really excellent Vincent! I like your choice to go f/16 on this. My only thought is have you tried making it more of a true pano and removing even more of the foreground? I am thinking about half of the dirt in the FG would be plenty and give it more of a long hear feel. I also don't think you would loose anything, because that part of the image doesn't seem to be adding much to the comp IMO. But overall...great shot!

Registered on June 19, 2008, 1005 Posts, 8028 Comments

Comment posted by Andrew Sentipal on September 5, 2012 at 7:45 PM

I like the mood here. F16 was the way to go to get the herd in focus. Stunning image.

Andrew

Registered on February 16, 2008, 200 Posts, 317 Comments

Comment posted by Jenaya Launstein on September 8, 2012 at 7:57 PM

Very exceptional image, Vincent! One of my favourites of yours!

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

Comment posted by Morkel Erasmus on September 11, 2012 at 5:37 AM

I just love the mood here Vincent...I'm a sucker for a proper animal-scape and the light here adds heaps to it.

Love the dust being kicked up as the herd trudges forward. Pano crop suits it well.

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

Comment posted by Lon Sharp on September 13, 2012 at 1:41 PM

I especially like the light coming off the water to add to the backlighting. Cool capture. I like the darker foreground, but think it might be even stronger in more pano format, with a little less of the foreground.

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