Breach
An Orca breaches in July of 2012 in Kenai Fjords National Park in southern coastal Alaska.
An Orca breaches in July of 2012 in Kenai Fjords National Park in southern coastal Alaska.
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Dec, 2012Views
4065
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Awards
Action Award
Chatter Award
Legendary Award
Contest Finalist in The Marine Wildlife Photo Contest
Contest Finalist in Call Of The Wild Photo Contest
Featured
Contest Finalist in Solo Animals Photo Contest
Prizes by Drop It Modern!
Featured
Absolute Masterpiece
Superb Composition
Top Choice
Jaw Dropping
Peer Award
Magnificent Capture
Superior Skill
All Star
Outstanding Creativity
Top Ranks
Top 20 rankTop 10 rank week 1
Top 20 rankTop 10 rank week 2Top 10 rank week 1
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Platinum
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FredGramoso
May 15, 2013
Just fantastic! This is the kind of picture I dream to make!! Congrats, featured well deserved!
Monty
May 15, 2013
Great shot. I like how such a large creature is made to look so small against the background. Congrats.
PRO
drakkardarkblade
May 15, 2013
Congrats! Awesome capture. If you get a chance please check out my work.
PRO+
Platinum
fullframefotos
May 16, 2013
Thank you viewbug for the feature... and a special thanks to all the great comments and feedback from the members! Much obliged!
Platinum
Platinum
fullframefotos
September 02, 2013
Thank you for all the nice comments everyone. I really enjoyed capturing this image and the experience is only enhanced by being able to share it with all of you.. @prashanjayatheepam I used a 24-85 f.4.. I had seriously changed from Nikon to Canon the day before this whale tour and had only one lens to work with.. In all honesty if I would've had a normal telephoto setup I don't think I would have gotten the same image. This image has transitioned my mentality towards wildlife photography completely.
KatieMcKinneyPhotography
February 16, 2015
WOW! I don't say this often but this is breathtaking!!! just incredible! Congrats on all the awards!
Same photographer See allBehind The Lens
Behind The Lens
Location
This photo was taken in Aialik Bay in Kenai Fjords National Park in south central Alaska.Time
This is probably one of my luckiest images. The day before capturing this image I had swapped out my entire camera setup from Canon to Nikon. I went from shooting a Canon 1Ds with multiple lenses to having a Nikon D800 and a 24-85 f4 lens. Several friends and I departed on an 8 hour whale watching tour out of Seward, Alaska at 8am. The majority of the tour was my introduction not only to a new camera body but also to a new camera layout, format and company. The day was a classic coastal Alaska day with moments of sunlight, puffy clouds and then a thick and looming marine layer in the afternoon. This image was captured around 2pm as the marine layer really began to sit in on the surrounding peaks.Lighting
The lighting was fairly flat due to the thick marine layer. As much as the light was very even the looming clouds with the peaks in the background created a dramatic feel. I wanted to highlight the drama of this breach moment and have it act as as a further stimulus to the already dramatic scene. When I began post processing the quality of light and the drama of the scene didn't look natural unless it was cast in black and white.Equipment
This was shot with a Nikon D800, with a Nikon 24-85mm f4, no other equipment was used.Inspiration
I had undertaken a whale watching tour in hopes of observing as many whales as possible. My gut instinct towards these moments is to experience them first and then capture them second. Allowing an organic recollection of the moment to be exemplified in my photography. For this image I was panning the line of the ocean, looking through the view finder, when the whale breached in my frame. My index finger had fired off 4 captures before I consciously realized what was happening. Over the next 8 minutes we observed 8 similar breaches. Each time it was as if my camera and index finger were working just a few moments ahead of my brain. As much as my inspiration is normally more reflective this image was captured out of sheer instinct and a broad amount of luck.Editing
The majority of my post processing was trial and error. This was one of the first images I edited after switching from a Canon setup to a Nikon body. The D800 provides a high level of contrast before any processing. The majority of post processing was dodging and burning, making sure the contrast remained balanced enough to remain dramatic but not be over done.In my camera bag
The first thing I always reach for is My Nikon D810 and Nikon 24-70 f2.8. I feel like almost any avenue of work can be undertaken with this as the base of my kit. My kit is built from their depending on what type of work I'm undertaking. I carry a 40 liter Clik Elite bag with me for 90% of my shoots, even if I feel like a piece of my kit won't be necessary I still bring it. I carry a Nikon 70-200 VR I f2.8, Nikon 50mm f1.4, Nikon 60mm f2.8, Nikon 16-35 f4. Depending on the type of work from their I add accessories as necessary.Feedback
I think moments like this are rewarded to those that first have an idea of what they want to capture in their mind and second will not accept failure. Before this whale tour I had undertaken 3 such trips, with no such luck. While on this tour, whether it was cold, raining or warm I remained on the deck of the boat, constantly panning the line of the ocean, listening to every bit of information from the captain and crew. I will be the first to admit that capturing this moment in this capacity took a lot of luck, however I did everything I possibly could to give myself the best odds of capturing this image. I researched the whale migration, I asked the whale tour company which tours were observing the most activity, I put myself out their and I refused to accept failure. When I look back on this image I'm reminded of a quote by Gena Showalter, “Giving up is the only sure way to fail.”
