FF Wildlife Portraits

[NorthernFocus]

Here are a few shots from my trip last week. I had the opportunity to capture a few full frame portraits(not intentionally in the case of the bear) which I had never done for these particular species.

Nikon D810, 500mm VR
1. There were a few uncomfortable moments when this sow got this close. But I trusted the guide and kept shooting.


2. The harbor seals seemed to be a bit less skittish around the ice flows than elsewhere. They have such sad eyes.


Nikon D4, 200-400mm VR
3. This guy/gal was curious and perhaps looking for scraps of food around camp.

[Kodiak]

Here are a few shots from my trip last week…

Niiiice! The bear "feels" slightly over exposed but the other two are perfect
and the fox is my favourite! Very cute!

I would normally jump on the bear but the eyes are too small and the take does
not show the eventual magnificence of this ursidae family member.

What a trip this must have been!

[bnnrcn]

They are all great Dan

[Shadowman]

Nice captures.

[Manfred M]

Wow! Great shots. Being that close to a bear and on land would make for a very uncomfortable feeling. I've been that close to a bear, but it was swimming, so out of its element, so much less of a risk (although I was hoping that the motor on the Zodiac wouldn't stall out on us) My initial thought on the bear is that it looks a touch underexposed; I guess you don't have the foresight to drop a ColorChecker somewhere near the bear?

As for the harbour seal's sad eyes; that's what you get for being lower down in the food chain and knowing it, I guess.

The fox; just another great shot! It certainly has something on its mind.

Keep those shots coming!

[NorthernFocus]

Glad you folks like the shots. The bears can be more challenging than one would think due to wide variability in colors from one to the next and even on the same bear. While this one was on the opposite side of the creek I took some readings with spot meter. With frontal lighting I found over three stops difference between the lightest highlights on her hump/neck and the darkest areas on her bum. The image as displayed was processed a bit to reduce overall contrast due to fairly harsh lighting at the time. Unfortunately while at this close range it never looked directly at the camera (though that was probably a good thing) so the shot doesn't really exhibit that intimidating brown bear look that we expect. But with a 36MP file you can see every hair and every grain of sand stuck to it I also have a vertical full body shot of her taken a minute or so sooner which I like a lot more. But still no eye contact

I've taken dozens of harbor seal head shots over the years and never kept one. This was the closest I've been to one with camera in hand and was in nice colorful water. The ice was a nice bonus.

The fox hung around for a bit so I got several shots of it. Its hind quarters were still shedding so the head and tail were its most attractive features. This is one of the only shots that the little bugger looked at the camera with its eyes full open. Most of the time it was squinting.

[terrib]

Wow, that's some trust you put in that guide! I love them all. The seal is such a great perspective. And I always love the foxes. There's just something about them that makes them fun. What a great experience!

[Rita]

Looks like it was a great trip. Love the images, the seal when viewed full screen looks like it is right in your face.

[FootLoose]

I love the seal shot, Dan, I can see that one as a wall poster.

[NorthernFocus]

Glad you guys liked the shots. Greg, I think the seal is bound for a 16x20 metal print for an exhibit next month.

[DanK]

All great. The bear shot is the one that will grab the most attention, but I think the seal image is the best of a great set.

[Mike Buckley]

The personified personalities of the fox and seal make an incredible comparison. I'm so glad you posted them next to each other.

After seeing the photo of the bear, I would give the guide two tips -- one for providing such a great experience and one for keeping you alive to tell others about it.

Looking forward to more photos!

[Nicks Pics]

Sometimes it seems a bit ashame to spend the moment you are close to an animal in the wild trying to take photos of it instead of looking at it, but maybe it's not because having photographs like those to look at afterwards gives you a chance to really observe how beautiful those animals are, and then to give others a way others see too! So thanks for sharing! Captured very well.

By the way, how did you get the low perspective shot of the seal?

[ied]

Beautiful captures. Yes, the seal is my first choice as well but i do like them all as I find
wildlife most fascinating.

Irene

[Aeros]

Wonderful shots, so good that I'm now too shy to show my trip to Haida Gwaii.

[NorthernFocus]

Thanks for looking and commenting, folks. The seal is also my favorite of this group and my personal favorite of the entire week of shooting. At least of those I've reviewed so far. Nick the low perspective is attainable because I shoot from my own small boat. And I do take plenty of time to observe and enjoy. But actually I've learned a lot about wildlife by watching through the perspective of a long lens. All distractions are removed and one can really study the subject. Granted during capture sequences one's attention is diverted to technical and creative aspects.

[Nicks Pics]

actually I've learned a lot about wildlife by watching through the perspective of a long lens. All distractions are removed and one can really study the subject. Granted during capture sequences one's attention is diverted to technical and creative aspects.

My main point was that one cool thing about getting photos of wildlife is that you can share the sights with others, and you can often notice a lot of things about the animals from the picture that you did not notice in real life. Photos stay still for extended study. Although just for the experience of viewing, I'd rather watch through binoculars than spend the time fussing with a camera, but that is moot for someone trying to be a photographer. Best solution is probably to spend enough time out to do both if you can! A camera lens does act as an optical viewing scope, and I spend quite a bit of time watching animals through it, but once I had taken some photos of a bird that was not on my check list yet, and I didn't know whether I could add it then or not There could be a technical answer to this question.

[ShaneS]

Beautiful shots Dan and I'm so glad you shared your venture into up close and personal animal portraiture with us! Like others I will look forward to your other shots from the trip.

Your seal shot will do very well in the exhibit IMHO. My guess is that you should make multiple copies because if it is for sale many will want a copy

[pnodrog]

Great shots. I like the seal and the very low shooting position (who cares if you almost drowned the camera). The fox looks curious but alert. The bear fills the frame alarmingly but I agree with Kodiak that it looks a bit bright or maybe sharpened just a bit too strongly.

[IzzieK]

These are all excellent shots, Dan. My first thought when I saw the bear was that the bush pilot who dropped you off purposely dropped you off where the bears are and left you folks there. What a gory thought! And I noticed every strand of hair and your use of 500mm VR and the D810! 36 megapixels is the Wow! factor to add too -- so I thought that was how you survived that bear experience. My favourite is the seal too. It reminds me of when we were starting our food session to blur the foreground and concentrate on the subject of the shot. It works with that shot of the seal too. Beautiful! The fox looks like a young one. I like the curious pose here and the eyes is like drawing you in. What a wonderful exciting time you must have had at the time...

More shots to share with us???? Was Paige with you for this trip?