by Brad Hill
A Killer Scene
Killer Whales (AKA Orcas) are absolutely fascinating animals. And, most humans' attitudes toward these highly intelligent and sentient marine mammals have evolved dramatically over the years. Decades ago they were known simply as Black Fish, and many viewed them as dangerous predators that the world would be best without. Today, they're among the most beloved of animals and considered to be icons that strongly symbolize the power, beauty, and wonder of nature. If we could only transition the public's view towards wolves, grizzlies, sharks and other apex predators in a parallel fashion we'd be getting somewhere!
As photographic subjects Killer Whales are extremely challenging. While they WILL breach and perform other eye-catching above-water antics (including spy-hopping and tail-slapping), most of the time all you get are dorsal fins! One approach I like to take when photographing Killer Whales is to create expansive animalscapes that show them as part of a larger overall scene. Animalscapes are always very tough to capture (and process from raw), at times even just finding appropriate scenes with wildlife in them is a major challenge. Fortunately, the place where I most commonly photograph Killer Whales (in and around the Johnstone Strait of Vancouver Island) commonly presents photographers - at least those who are willing and able to see the "big picture" - with some fantastic (and moody) backdrops. In this shot a large bull is accompanied by two smaller Killers as they swim along the fog-shrouded coast of Vancouver Island.
Subject: Trio of Killer Whales (Orcinus orca) travelling the shoreline
Location: Northern Vancouver Island region, BC, Canada
Camera: Nikon D750
Lens: Sigma Sport 150-600mm zoom at 230mm. Hand-held from sailboat; optical stabilization on and in OS1 mode.
Exposure: 1/800s @ f7.1; ISO 1100. No compensation from matrix-metered exposure setting.
Crop: None
A lot more info about this shot - including a 2400 pixel version of it and some discussion of creating animalscape shots - can be found here on my website:
http://www.naturalart.ca/galleries/latest/detail_2.html
Comments and critiques welcomed - probably best to view the larger version prior to doing so!
Cheers...
Brad
PS: Like all wildlife images on my website and that I post on NPN, the subject is fully wild and completely unconstrained. Besides the potential impact of my presence, nothing has been done to intentionally alter or affect the ongoing behavior of the subject and, of course, there has been no use of any form of bait or other form of wildlife attractants (including vocalizations)
Comments
12 commentsCertainly a moody image. IMHO the cloud/fog bank in the center helpts to frame the subjects. Thanks for sharing.
Hi Brad,
An absolute beauty. Begging to be framed. It has a mysterious feel to it with both the mountains and the Orcas only partly visible.
Cheers,
Hisham.
Really exquisite image Brad. Perhaps my only comment is to ask if you considered a 16x9 crop to reduce a bit of the clouds at the top? I do like the touch of blue in the upper right but it feels like too much of the relatively detail-less clouds versus the orcas and the rainforest.
Clinton
Hi Clinton,
Good question. I did consider more of a pano crop but rejected it for a few reasons. First, as you pointed out, I found the blue tinge filtering through the wispy clouds (in the upper right corner) appealing and in going "more pano" that was reduced in impact more than I liked. The clouds near the top of the frame also have some form to them, thus adding a bit of structure to the sky. Second, I tend to like my subjects (especially in 'scapes) quite low in the frame (or "grounded"), and I thought in keeping the full amount of sky that I did it help convey the feeling of the subjects being very low in the frame (in a relative perspective). Last - and possibly most trivially - I have to say that I'm getting very tired of what I perceive as the "excessive pano trend" (meaning everywhere I look I see panos!).
Cheers...
Brad
PS: And...at times it's a bit gratifying to post a completely non-cropped (full-frame!) image!
Killer scene is right Brad. This is one of those photos that make you want to be there to witness. Thanks for posting this moment in time!
Brad,
Love the feel of this, just wish there was a little flash of white on these big Dolphins
Great atmosphere n great subject, actually three of them, this is very well executed! I wonder greys too can be attractive.
Before reading the comments, I too was considering the cropping out the top clouds. It still is a valid option !?
Jagdeep Rajput
Sometimes it's not just about the subject, but more about the environment, habitat and the atmosphere the subjects are in. Conveys the location extremley well, love it as presented!!!!
TFS
Steve
Truly a killer scene. I think this goes in with your top shelf images, gallery worthy. I especially appreciate the eye for the subtle compostional shapes in the background, coupled with great lighting.
You know I love these, Brad.
Another very nicely executed animalscape!
Hey all,
Thanks again for the feedback.
Jagdeep: You asked "It still is a valid option !?" (in regards to the idea of moving toward a pano crop). Always an option, but for the reasons I mentioned above I prefer the full-frame version that I posted. I did experiment with a slight pano crop (removing some of the top of the image) but to me it felt too flat.
Ken: You said: "...just wish there was a little flash of white on these big Dolphins". I'll report your suggestion to the animal design department and see if they can convince the creator to change the colour pattern of these animals. But sadly the dorsal surface of Killer Whales (at least the current models) is dark, dark, dark (some do have a slightly lighter but still dark gray saddle patch - the middle one here shows that - but you'll never find white on the dorsal surface in any of the representatives of this population).
Cheers...
Brad
Love this one large, the overall mood it conveys is just wonderful Brad.
Excellent work, it's a wall hanger for sure