The Victor?

Gallery: WildlifePosted December 21, 2012150 views3 comments

Found this buck grazing on grasses about an hour after sunrise this morning in my local nature preserve. Sun had just cleared the tree line, so it wasn't too harsh yet. Mostly what I was seeing today was bucks by themselves and does with no buck around. So I thought maybe the rut was winding down. However, looking at the fur on the side of this guy and around his face, certainly leads me to believe he had been fighting. No blood but he surely had some definite places where the fur had been scraped off. Judging by his body and antler size, I would guess he was probably the victor but you never know. I wish this was a better quality image with a less messy BG and a better head turn. But this is the best I could get. It does show his wounds which is what I was trying to get. Full frame, slight increase in temp, and sharpened for the web. Comments and critiques welcomed and appreciated.

Tech Info

Canon 60D with EF 70-200mm f/4L with 1.4 TC = 280mm
1/1600th @ f/5.6 and ISO 1000
tripod

Comments

3 comments

Comment posted by Philip Hodgkins on December 21, 2012 at 8:43 AM

It does look like he took a few licks! He looks old and tired. Tech wise, the color looks a bit undersaturated.

Registered on July 24, 2006, 2741 Posts, 12349 Comments

Comment posted by John Tobias on December 21, 2012 at 9:08 AM

Certainly looks as if he has been through the wars! I agree with you that a better head position would have been nice. Still, nicely done. Thanks for sharing.

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

Comment posted by Vincent Grafhorst on December 22, 2012 at 9:23 AM

Your self-critique Peter, as always, is spot on.

A head turn would really have made all the difference IMO too. That said this does show off the wounds well.

Registered on February 24, 2006, 504 Posts, 7203 Comments