Wednesday, June 19, 2013

Whitetail Deer in Meadow

This whitetail deer was photographed in a spring meadow with tall, green grass.  The morning sky was moderately overcast so the light is very even and soft.  The deer was actively feeding in the meadow and didn't offer any interesting image until she turned to look at another approaching deer.  I took this image when she raised her head and aimed her ears forward.  The darker trees in the far background contrast nicely with her head.  My only objection to the composition is that the tail is a distraction and competes with the head as the center of attention.  The tail is not in focus, due to the shallow depth of field, but it still distracts.  I like how the blades of grass gently fill the right side of the frame with a diagonal line.
400mm lens, 1/1000 second at f/2.8, ISO 1000.

Thursday, June 6, 2013

Deer in a Sunbeam-4

This whitetail deer was laying in deeply shaded woods about an hour after sunrise.  There was nothing compelling about this and it would have been too dark for a decent exposure anyway until the sunbeam tracked onto her.  At about the same time her attention was drawn to another deer nearby and her ears perked up.  That was it; the best shot of the morning!  Exposing for the bright deer allowed for the background to go almost entirely dark.
400mm lens, 1/400 second at f/3.5, ISO 640.

Here is a link to a larger version of the image:http://dteetor2.imagekind.com/store/imagedetail.aspx/a72a1688-5837-43b3-98ba-e5452fc222bd/Deer_in_a_Sunbeam4