michaelneinast
FollowPortrait of a Japanese macaque, aka a snow monkey.
Portrait of a Japanese macaque, aka a snow monkey.
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Awards
Action Award
Zenith Award
Top Shot Award 22
Creative Winter Award
Curator's Selection
Legendary Award
Lucky 3 Award
Contest Finalist in Apes Photo Contest
Contest Finalist in Celebrating Earth Day Photo Contest 2019
Contest Finalist in An Unforgettable Adventure Photo Contest
Honorable Mention in Wildlife Photo Contest 2018
Contest Finalist in Our Natural Planet Photo Contest
Contest Finalist in Covers Photo Contest Vol 38
Contest Finalist in Composing with Textures Photo Contest
Contest Finalist in Celebrating Nature Photo Contest Vol 2
Amateur Winner The Animal Eye Photo Contest
Contest Finalist in The Animal Eye Photo Contest
Member Selection Award
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Peer Award
Top Choice
Superb Composition
Absolute Masterpiece
Outstanding Creativity
Magnificent Capture
Superior Skill
All Star
Genius
Virtuoso
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darleneschopmeyerhayes
June 07, 2019
Oh my, this is so emotional and heart breaking and beautiful, it just touches my soul so deeply. Amazing capture and presentation ....just perfect! Thank you for sharing this, i just love it. Congratulations on your well deserved awards and acknowledgements.
Same photographer See allBehind The Lens
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Behind The Lens
Location
I took this photo in Jigokudani Monkey Park in Nagano Prefecture, Japan.Time
This was taken at around 11am as we travelled around four hours to get to the park from Tokyo.Lighting
I really wanted to bring the details of his fur and facial features out while creating an aura that further lends to the deep expression he was giving me.Equipment
For this shot, I was using my Nikon D7100 with my standard 16-85mm lens - no flash or tripod necessary.Inspiration
This is one of the pictures that I come back to time and time again because it essentially captured why I travelled to the park in the first place. When we were setting up our itinerary, we debated a while on whether or not to travel so far north as it was considerably out of the way (we spent upwards of 7-8 hours on the trains and buses to spend about an hour and a half at the park). The park is renowned for its Japanese macaques that bathe in hot springs during the winter; our trip was in late April, so while we didn't see many hanging out in the hot springs, we did get to experience lots of newborns (I have a few other pictures). The park rangers don't let you get too close to the monkeys for their safety, despite it being a completely open park (no fences or anything anywhere), but this guy walked right up next to me and sat down, camera ready! I can stare at this picture forever - his deep, longing look speaks volumes to so many things - I absolutely love it.Editing
This picture only required some basic editing that included clarity boost, some variable vibrancy boosts to certain colors, and tweaking of the curves graph. I added a bit of a focal blur to the face to further emphasize the focal point.In my camera bag
I'm pretty simplistic when I travel - I have my Nikon D7100 and my 16-85mm lens. This setup typically fulfills all of my needs for travel and landscape photography. I do have my nifty 35mm which is great, but I find myself using it less and less despite the clarity it provides in many situations. I find having the standard zoom lens is easier to tweak landscapes with, especially if I don't have a lot of time to search for different perspectives. If I'm shooting in the mornings/evenings/nights, I'll carry my external flash and tripod with me - my tripod also comes with me in certain locations. For instance, if I know I'll be photographing water or something I'll want to work with a long exposure.Feedback
One of the biggest advantages of the digital age in terms of being a photographer is the essentially limitless ability to take photographs on location. There is an absolute beauty to film photography, but being able to let loose and choose the right picture that fits what you have in mind certainly has its perks in my opinion. Patience is also a huge factor in most on-location photography. I rarely have anything in my mind about a spot before heading out other than it's overall beauty or attraction, so I have to emphasize the importance of waiting to find that perfect light or framing that will set those alarm bells off in your head alerting you to that picture you imagined before you even knew it was what you were looking for. This picture was taken in the last 20 minutes of being at the park, and while I have plenty from my hour and a half there, this is easily my favorite. Not to mention that he walked up and sat down a few feet away from me and began posing like this, I'd say sometimes it's just best to go with the flow and keep your eyes and mind open!