Mission Island Deer

[Suzan J]

Hello All: I went to the Mission Island conservation area last Sunday. This area is protected and there is no hunting allowed. There are a few people who live on the the island and some industrial operations scattered here and there. It is a rather large island. There is a local deer population as well. Here are some shots I managed to get of a couple of bucks and some does. I wish they were not quite so soft, but I attribute that to too low of a shutter speed and camera shake brought on by my adrenaline rush at seeing them so close up. The bucks were quite wary and would not step out of the brush, but the girls were far more social.

As is often the case, the one that got away was the best specimen. I saw a buck with a gigantic rack who was obviously the king of the island, but being the savvy old fellow that he is, he would not let me anywhere near him and all images of him were obscured by thick brush. Trust me, he was huge. As usual, any C and C is greatly appreciated.


F8 SS 160 ISO 500 220mm




F8 SS 160 ISO 500 200mm




F8 SS 160 ISO 500 200mm




F8 SS 80 ISO 800 300mm

[Shadowman]

Nice series.

[Mike Buckley]

The second and third images are especially nice. The second one displays context and great use of depth of field. The third one is an environmental portrait perfectly framed by the grasses and weeds in the foreground.

Consider adding a very slight vignette to them, one that you don't notice until you remove it.

The last one isn't near the quality of the others for me. The grass that blocks the eye and the tree that blocks the antler would render this a non-keeper for me.

[Suzan J]

Thanks Mike and John for the comments. If only you could have heard me cursing about the grass and brush, your ears would have turned blue. Darned vegetation! Mike, your mention of a vignette is timely since I am learning Lightroom right now and experimenting with all the new options. I have never used it before, so this may be a good exercise.

[Mike Buckley]

A vignette accomplishes two goals for me -- leading the viewer's eye to the subject and adding a subtle sense of depth to the entire image.

[Brownbear]

Hi Susan,

Nice set. I especially love the 2nd image - beautiful!

[bnnrcn]

Very nice images

[Kaye Leggett]

Your third shot is very good, you get a sense of a stag in charge who doesn't like you on his territory. I agree with Mike the last one has the distracting grass and also he looks startled - no 3 doesn't have the same look and is stronger for it.

[Suzan J]

Thanks Kaye, Binnur, Christina, and John for the comments. It is much appreciated. Thanks also to Mike for the vignetting tip. I will definitely give it a go. My heart always skips a beat when I see something like this group of deer. More often than not, there is always some condition that is less than ideal, such as the brush and grass, but one has to learn to work with what's there. Of course, I also need to calm down and concentrate.

[Otavio]

Hi, Suzan. A lovely set of beautiful animals. All are very nice, but I especially love the 3rd. It is a great composition, with a strong subject.

Cheers,

[Nicks Pics]

Great shots. I have to say my favorite is the 2nd with the out-of-focus does in the background, it is a great composition. Vegetation is hard to work around, it gets in the way often. I think the low light was handled very nicely without making them too dark, or soft. Probably not recommended unless your camera cannot handle high iso well, but I sometimes use 1/50 shutter speed when the light is low. As for critique, my suggestion would be to crop a little off the left side of #2, to make it more balanced, but nt so much that all the tall grass would be clipped off.

[IzzieK]

I like #1 for the backlight on his head, particularly the ears and #3 is a very, very good one too...love all of them.

[Suzan J]

Thanks Otávio, Nick and Izzie for all your comments and advice. I'm hoping for another chance to find this group of deer before the snow flies and my camera freezes over.