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Munching Under the Moon
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Munching Under the Moon

by Gary Minish

Gallery: WildlifePosted December 15, 2015207 views13 comments
This is the same moose as my last post as it was getting darker and the moon was moving into the background.  It was difficult to get it bright enough to show some detail on the moose without blowing out the sunset or moon.  This moose was a very dark color anyway (essentially black fur on parts of it) and the light was weak. I also wanted to keep the near twilight mood of the scene as close as possible to what it was. To add to the difficulty, the moose was pawing the snow to uncover the grass  so I needed as much shutter speed as possible.  Despite all the issues this is my favorite of the moose shots because of the context and mood.

Sony ILCE-6000, FE 70-200 F4 G @ 75 mm, ISO-100, f/4.0, 1/125, hand held.

 

Comments

13 comments
Comment posted by John Tobias on December 15, 2015 at 8:27 AM
Mine also!  A very different moose  photo.  Thanks for sharing.
Registered on September 12, 2009, 2120 Posts, 6455 Comments
Comment posted by Richard Sandor on December 15, 2015 at 10:04 AM
Gary: I really like the pastel tones of this photo and the darkness of the mooses' body makes for an interesting juxtaposition. It's a very well composed scene with all of the body well seen against the snow covered background and the moon as an added bonus. A wall hanger. Congrats! Richard
Registered on January 12, 2014, 453 Posts, 1625 Comments
Comment posted by Lon Sharp on December 15, 2015 at 11:36 AM
Very nice!  I think you nailed it and the darker feel works great with the pastel colors in the sky.  I appreciate how the tallest trees are pointing at the moon, tying the composition together! 
Registered on December 9, 2007, 258 Posts, 9892 Comments
Comment posted by William Bickle on December 15, 2015 at 1:14 PM
Hello Gary.... Great capture, exuding a moody time!  Maybe try a selective lightening of the moose in its darker areas, to bring out some detail.   Like Lon mentioned,  those well-trained trees do point to the moon.

Bill
www.BillBickle.com 

 
Registered on June 13, 2011, 183 Posts, 1702 Comments
Comment posted by Kurt Bowman on December 15, 2015 at 9:39 PM
This one has a nice serene peaceful feeling to it Gary. Nice work.
Registered on June 19, 2008, 1005 Posts, 8028 Comments
Comment posted by Genny K. on December 16, 2015 at 2:15 AM
Indeed! My favorite also.  For me, it all comes together in this one.  The entire image, the compositon, the colors of the snow and sky, the moose... it is quintessential Alaska in winter.  Sweet!devil
Registered on June 5, 2006, 132 Posts, 2001 Comments
Comment posted by Cay-Uwe Kulzer on December 16, 2015 at 2:20 AM
Gary,

very nice mood and all over the setup is very good, as it is also the technically realization.
Registered on January 27, 2004, 494 Posts, 4021 Comments
Comment posted by Mark Seaver on December 16, 2015 at 8:33 AM
You caught a wonderful mood here, Gary.  The moose shows nicely and the snow plus gentle colors in the sky makes for a perfect winter scene.  The moon is a crowning touch.
Registered on January 23, 2011, 1103 Posts, 17270 Comments
Comment posted by David Bogener on December 17, 2015 at 1:24 PM
Love it.  Perfect Christmas card.
Registered on October 30, 2013, 417 Posts, 1255 Comments
Comment posted by Katie Jones on December 19, 2015 at 10:41 AM
Gary,
This is my favorite of your moose images so far. I love the mood - the colors and the moon translate nicely. You can almost feel the cold when looking at the image. Great composition. I'd say you nailed it! :)
Registered on November 17, 2015, 17 Posts, 91 Comments
Comment posted by Dennis Plank on December 19, 2015 at 5:20 PM
Excellent, Gary.  You don't always need the darks to have detail in an image.  Certainly you didn't see any detail in them when you were taking this image.  I do wonder why you were at iso-100 if you wanted more shutter speed?

devil
Registered on January 28, 2008, 1767 Posts, 23192 Comments
Comment posted by Mike Ramy on December 23, 2015 at 9:42 AM
Hey Gary,
Wonderful scene and expertly captured,
Congratulations on the WP . . .  devil
Registered on June 16, 2012, 567 Posts, 2809 Comments
Comment posted by Pete Bengeyfield on December 24, 2015 at 10:15 AM
Tough shot and well executed.  I'm shivering just looking at it.
Registered on December 2, 2003, 1247 Posts, 3439 Comments