Natural or edited/photoshopped wild life pictures

[the black fox]

Re: Natural or edited/photoshopped wild life pictures

hhmmmmm a really hard one to quantify ,a lot depends on where your taking the photo ,if on the coast you can often in the right light make sure the bird/animal has a nice blue sky/sea background but always try to ensure the sun is behind or nearly behind you to enhance the subject ,likewise if inland i look for rocks etc to put seed on to lure the birds in if you can include a grass or corn field as background that will often achieve that nice bokah ,i,m not against cloning out the odd twig or something either but in moderation .not always possible in jpeg shots nat !!!!!!!.

i am also of the mind that if its possible to stage manage a scenario its often worthwhile and on one reserve i visit i have a free hand to do as i like due to limited numbers of visitors ,one little tip i always in winter carry a bag in my pocket of mixed seed and peanuts and use them either to draw subjects in or to simply reward them as a thank you for a good shot achieved .

99% use a car to get from a to b i wonder how many think of using it as a portable hide to .if you know where birds congregate its simply working out where the sun is and parking kerbside close to a bush full of berries etc there feeding on ,use a bit of patience and wait for them to come to you

[David Morison]

Re: Natural or edited/photoshopped wild life pictures

As I may have mentioned before, I'm a birdwatcher and as such my main interest is in recording birds I have seen in the wild and these photos are seen mainly by other birdwatchers via Bird Club forums, Facebook, Twitter etc. Although I may do some curves/colours adjustment and perhaps a little sharpening it wouldn't occur to me to modify the background, the bird in it's natural setting is an important part of the record. The pleasure is all in using observation and stealth to capture my subjects which means more time spent out in the field and less on the computer. By Stan's classification I'm a "Snapper" not a photographer, and very happy in that role.

David

[Nathaniel]

Re: Natural or edited/photoshopped wild life pictures

Thanks Dave_S for your comment. I thought I'd post the lion picture in full colour.

img135 by nathaniel.ramanaden, on Flickr

[Sarawak]

Re: Natural or edited/photoshopped wild life pictures

Hello Nat, and Happy New Year.
I've just been pointed to this thread. I must admit that I never understand this obsession that camera clubs have with "Rules". Why is a picture a good picture if it conforms to man made rules? I really cannot understand that. Just because some old timers in a committee meeting somewhere in London say that photos must conform to their rules doesn't mean that we have to follow them.
And as for photo competitions. Well they are just stupid. Why one person has the right to say that one photo is better than another confuses me. They might like one photo better than another, but that is a personal opinion. It's no wonder photo clubs are struggling to attract new young members with such outdated ideas as these. Have they never heard of the internet? Young/new photographers simply won't accept being told to sit still for two hours and unquestioningly follow someone else's rules. Life has changed!
If you like a picture then it's a good picture.
Best wishes Nat,
Sara W.

[Nathaniel]

Re: Natural or edited/photoshopped wild life pictures

HI! Sara, A very happy New year to you and yours. First time,ever I think, I am laid up with a cold or flu on New years eve/New year day. Anyway I will bounce back without feeling sorry for myself!!!! I know that many members have joined camera clubs and seem to enjoy that sort of buzz and excitement. I was, last year,requested to be a judge for an amateur photo competition and on the advice of a good friendly member, encouraged me to go ahead and gave me just 10 points to look out for- the most important being the WOW factor- whether the picture hits me and makes me go back to it time and again. On the basis of that advice, I judged the winners in their different categories and there were no complaints about my selections. So there you are. I was particularly looking for photoshopped images i.e the ones that appeared to be "too cleaned out", artificial blue skies and such like.