Brown bears at play

Excellent action and sharpness.

Nice one Chas!

Love the action and the expression on both faces. Gotta ask though why you chose to crop it like this rather than having a bit more room on the left and a bit more on the right?

Rich

Rich S wrote:Love the action and the expression on both faces. Gotta ask though why you chose to crop it like this rather than having a bit more room on the left and a bit more on the right?

Rich

Rich, they choose the crop. I simply fired as the one on the left lunged at the other. Had I had the 1.4 converter off ... perhaps, I could have better accommodated the one on the left. I am not sure if the image would be stronger had I included the entire animal, as it is now a leading line drawing your eye to the central point of action. If it was all included, being shot this tight it might act as a dead end of sorts.

I am curious what others might think.

Best my friend, and thanks for taking the time to comment

Chas

Great action shot. What wonderful images everyone is posting from this years trip. Looks like I am going back next year... Thanks for sharing.

Chas wrote: Rich, they choose the crop.

Chas

ROFL! It actually was the room on the right that led to the question, lest I be accused of being the "clipping police." As you've often noted, the action can make moot a question of clipped wing or fur.

Hope if you do this again it fits my schedule!

Rich

Awesome.. the low angle really makes it for me!

Incredible, Chas.

Very nice. I like the crop. My experience at shooting fighting/playing bear is limited, but I found it quite challenging. The body does lead nicely into the image. If anything, I might like a bit more saturation.

Awesome action! The high points have already been covered.

There's one thing about it that bugs me, and keeps drawing my eye. The lack of detail in the left bear's fur below shoulder level almost makes it look like there's a water droplet on the lens. However, when I look closer, I see that the effect is only on the bear and not on the water in front or behind her. There is a similar effect on the other bear, but only a few inches from the water line. I presume that this is an effect of the bear coming out of the water--her fur is completely slicked down. Therefore, there is absolutely nothing a photographer could do about it! But that spot still draws my eye every time I look at the picture!

-Paul

I see the spot Paul is talking about, it does seem to have less contrast or detail, but I think it is because of the bear just coming out of the water. I did not notice it since the action is happening near the center of the frame.
I think the composition you have works well, especially since the bear is charging towards the right of the frame, and they 'may' move in that direction after impact. I would probably crop a bit off the top... but that is probably being too picky. :roll: