The Illusive Leopard
Oudsthoorn, Western Cape, South Africa.
Oudsthoorn, Western Cape, South Africa.
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Sep, 2015Views
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Behind The Lens
Location
I took this shot at the Wildlife Ranch in Oudtshoorn in South Africa. It is definitely one of my favourite places to go as I always get the chance to take great shots.Time
Late-morning to mid-afternoon.Lighting
The day was quite bright, and thus I had to change my settings in order to highlight the Leopard better. You will notice that the sky in the background is white due to overexposure - this is one of the things that irks me the most in my photos. The ability to have both the background and subject in good lighting is definitely a skill I would like to learn and work on.Equipment
I used my Canon 550D. No flash was used and no tripod. I am unsure of which lens I used, but I think it was most likely my Stigma 75mm-350mm lens as it is my favoured lens.Inspiration
I absolutely love wildlife and consider leopards to be my favourite animal. They always make for great shots (If you can find them).Editing
I do not own any post-processing programs. My mother raised me to believe that the best shots are the ones you took and did not require any editing. I have nothing against editing/post-processing and love to see how talented some people are in their post-processing. I usually take all my shots on the Canon TV setting - where I can set most settings, but the Aperture is set automatically. (If I am taking Macro shots, I work with AV, where Aperture needs to be set, but shutterspeed is automatic).In my camera bag
I usually carry my Canon EOS 550D with me. I bought this camera back in 2010 and remember I saved up for about 5 years to buy it. Saving for the camera was a lot of effort as I was still very young(around 13). I remember skipping lunch or getting snacks from friends just so that I could save my lunch money. I did small favours like massages, etc. to also save some more money. When I bought it I only had enough money for about half of the cost. My parents covered the rest of the costs and I had to pay them the amount back for about a year or 2 after that. I carry a few lenses with me: the standard Canon 18-55mm, my favoured Stigma 75mm-350mm, a Tamron lens that cannot auto-focus anymore(I bought it second-hand) I also carry a mini tripod with me in my bag. I have a bunch of SD cards as I sometimes tend to be trigger-happy. Not in my main bag, but items I sometimes take with me is a monopod and a nice tripod.Feedback
Whenever I see great wildlife photos I always imagine the photographer going to great lengths to take the shot - as you would have seen National Geographic photographers do. Personally I think it would be best to first practice with easier targets before going to the extreme with taking a nice shot. It would be a pity if you went to such efforts to take a great shot, but your experience in photographing the target causes you to not be satisfied with your shots. This particular target (The leopard), was in an enclosure with walkways going around the top of the fence. It was a lucky moment to spot the Leopard up in the tree and I could get a nice shot. Since I was at a safe place, I could take a few shots and decide on which one I liked best. Always make sure you are safe when taking photos and take your time.
