Hi All! It's been hot in Alberta this summer (by our standards, anyway), and I needed a break.
I thought I'd give you a little glimpse into my world, as (1) this was photographed from our property; and (2) this is what winter can be like for us...and our resident fauna.
One morning this past December I looked out from our breakfast table and saw three coyotes working over a deer carcass. Apparently a mule deer had slipped on the ice (we live on a reservoir) and died in the night just 200yds from our home, and we were treated to a rather graphic scene of natural history while we scarfed down our Cheerios.
Needless to say Jenaya and I ate as quickly as we could, bundled up, grabbed our gear, and headed out to see what kind of images we could get.
If it looks windy in the picture, it was. In fact, as we peered over the edge of the coulee we had taken to get closer to the coyotes, the wind slammed us so hard we had a very hard time keeping the animals in the frame as it buffeted our long lenses.
While two coyotes continued to work the carcass, this guy trotted up on top of the ridge above them and I captured this frame as the wind swirled snow crystals all around him.
I must confess, Jenaya and I didn't last as long as I would have liked in the -35 C wind chill, but we returned with some cool pictures and a great memory.
I'm afraid the IQ on this one is compromised by three issues: (1) I had only recently gotten my 500mm lens and was not aware it seriously needed an AF Fine Tune (now resolved and working wonderfully); (2) the movement and vibrations resulting from wind gusts to 120km hitting my lens hood was not helping my ability to keep things steady, and I'm pretty sure I can detect the resulting degradation; (3) the weather conditions themselves meant there were a lot of ice/snow crystals between the front of my lens and the coyote. BUT, I liked the image too much not to share it.
I am posting a full-frame colour version immediately below, and would greatly appreciate your input/feedback on two things in particular:
1. Colour or B&W?
2. Full-frame (which shows the mountain backdrop) or pano crop?
Thanks so much for your time and consideration (and putting up with another long-winded narrative from me)!
Field Notes:
Nikon D600
Nikkor AF-S 500mm f/4 IF-ED
ISO 220
1/4000sec @ f/7.1
-1 EV to compensate for wildly bright backlit highlights
Crouched down and handheld in rather ridiculous weather conditions
Processing Notes:
Converted from RAW using Phase One Capture One Pro 7 with adjustments to colour balance, exposure and highlights
Minor additional tweaks to contrast and tones using Nik Color Efex Pro 4 and Viveza 2 in PS5
B&W version converted using Nik Silver Efex Pro 2
Full-frame width
Comments
12 commentsI certainly hope you live by a reservoir rather than on it
This is a very interesting image, albeit not technically perfect but I for one think it does not matter.
It certainly conveys the weather very well, and to think I complain when it is below zero in Hwange, but then I am in open vehicle
I think the pano crop works best, and although I am not a great fan of B&W, i think this suits the image best
As you can tell by which format I posted as the main image, I also thought this scene just worked as a B&W pano, but I still liked it in colour as well as liking the mountains in the distance so I thought I'd get some objective input! Thanks for validating my thinking right off the bat, though!
While I think this image and your story concerning it are compelling, I think the image quality, mainly the coyote, diminishes the impact quite a bit. I think you did well to get any images at all, given the conditions. I do like the pano B&W version better. On a more personal note, I look forward to the images you, Jenaya and Josiah post. It must be great having two children that share your passion for wildlife photography. Both Jenaya and Josiah seem like great kids and their photography skills are evident in the images they post. Kudos to you for nurturing their talent. You seem like a great dad.
You can put the full frame color version back in the can but I am very glad you posted it as a comparison. This is a great example of the difference between taking pictures and being a true artisan of nature photography. First off you were inspired by unfolding events to drop what your doing, grab the gear and rush towards a possible photographic moment. Then, under very challenging circumstances, make the best captures possible with the environment, action, lighting, subject and back ground offered to you. Finally you work various ideas in post processing with the tools available to you to created a final product. Outstanding final product indeed, the pano crop and B&W conversion are perfect for the mood this image creates. The placement of the subject portrays the solitude of the harsh conditions and the back lighting gives nice detail in the terrain. You turned this moment from a photo memory that gets put away in the lower desk drawer with all the other forgotten photographs to a true work of art that is destine to be hanging on the wall.
Max
As for the image, I also like the color version with a crop from the top.
Jerry, thanks so much for your kind words and encouragement on the dad/coach end of my life. I have some pretty amazing and talented kids, and I'm delighted to share a mutual passion for wildlife and wildlife photography with Jenaya and Josiah. They've definitely made me raise my game as I've coached them the past few years! Marlise, who was active on NPN in years past, has emerged as an incredible artist and designer, and still enjoys taking pictures with us from time to time, but it's no longer her main focus. My other daughter, Charis, also has a real artsy bent and is our resident crafter and food artist.
And Carol, I know. Talk to my wife about Alberta winters. She's already in denial about the mere days left before it is knocking at the door. We had lived in SW Alberta for only 17 months before witnessing snow in all 12 calendar months!
Thanks again...
Good job of taking lemons and making lemonade!
I prefer the B&W version, and a pano crop over the full-frame version, but I'm not convinced it's the crop you offered! When I scroll the page up and crudely crop that way, I'm left wondering if a crop removing more foreground and less (no?) background, and thus moving the subject to the lower 1/3 of the frame, works better for me. Why? I tend to like my subjects "grounded" (low in the frame) unless showing height is central to the image theme (as it is, for instance often with bighorns or mountain goats). And, in this case I like what the faint trees and hills in the distance nicely add to the environmental context of the image (at least for me). With the new crop I've suggested the image remains stark and cold, which is obviously important to the image.
Just my 2 cents worth...cheers...
Brad