Hi all

I've been off the forum for awhile, but would like to share the following image and get your opinions on it.



this was taken in the Shenandoah area near Loft Mountain
These two fawns were just a few steps away from their mother
and seemed to stick very close together as I photographed them.

thanks
Dale

Love the image....very nice capture. Needs some PP to get the color cast out of it..and tighten it up a bit...but very nice capture!

Roman

Thanks Roman,

I agree and hope to improve it with PP.
Another photographer friend of mine suggested that I remove a portion of the branch to the left of the ear etc.

I don't like to manipulate anything in my photography, but sometimes if it helps keep you focused on the main subject I guess it's ok.

thanks,
Dale

I agree about removing the branch.....I dont edit like that either. To me a photograph is the truth of what we saw....and my editing is limited to bridging the gap between how the camera sees (limited) and how the human experience was (unlimited)

Hope you dont mind me playing....the shot is awesome....couldnt resist. :~)

Your origonal:


My adjustment:


Roman

Hey Dale,

Nice shot - I have looked at it several times today before commenting. I really like the crop that you have taken to the image - I think it gives a different, almost movie-like feel to the image.

I agree that I think that the image needs to be brightened just a little bit. I am not sure that I find the branch distracting - I think I would feel comfortable leaving it as is.

Very nice shot - great composition.

James

I agree - this is a great shot. I also like what Roman did with the PP.

My personal opinion is I think I would crop more off the right side - so the two deer are more centered. I am slightly distracted by the far right tree.

Funny - I would not have thought twice about removing that branch. My thoughts are that I expect that if I were taking the shot, I would not have noticed that branch. Therefore if I remove it from the photo, the shot would still capture "the way I experienced the scene".

I would never do anything more invasive that that, but to me removing some minor "noise" like that branch is not much different from enhancing colors and contrast to emphasize certain portions of the photograph to be more like I remembered. At least I have a hard time making the distinction between the two.

I know this is a controversial subject for some...

Dale,

Nice intimate capture of these two sibs. The symmetry of the expressions in the fawns is really what makes this shot for me. It's obvious they are very interested in the viewer which in turn makes you interested in them. I am usually a big proponent of the "panoramic" format when it helps to encompass the context of the subject. IMHO in this shot it doesn't really work because the brighter tree trunk on the right side has enough detail to suck the eye away from the fawns and distracts from the intamacy. Unlike Roman, I have no qualms about changing things in the image to improve composition. For me the branch on the left going right into the ear of the fawn completely ruins the separation of the in forcus fawns from the light bokeh of the background. I really want to look right into the eyes of these two beauties, but my eye gets sucked into the background by the branch. Obviously, these guys are in the shade and their is a slight coolness in the cast so I agree with Roman that it could stand a "little" warming. On my calibrated monitor however, Roman's correction seems too strong.

Anyway, here is my version that tries to incorporate the points I made above. I'm really going for the intimacy of the two fawns and stressing their separation from the forest background. Oh, and I can never resist brightening up the eyes a little because no matter how you try, you can't not look there.

Wow,
thanks for all the effort on this image.
I agree with all of you and hope to improve my final image from your suggestions. My goal is always to make the print a more effective image so that my customers will fall in love with it and buy it. I still think about all of the work that we had to do in a lab with film to get that final print and now that digital allows us to achieve that look it makes us want to go out and shoot as often as we can.
I studied Ansel Adams' work for years and have always remembered his idea of pre visualization. His print of Moonrise, Hernandez New Mexico is a perfect example. I was at the same spot about 20 years ago and would have probably had to spend several months there until I could get a shot that I liked. His creativity in the darkroom is what made his prints so beautiful. I'm rambling, but that's what we do sometimes.

Again, thanks for all the great input.

I forgot to mention that this was taken with a D200 and the Nikon 70-200 2.8 VR lens that I had to rent.
Hope to buy one soon.

Dale