~ You can't see me ~
A wild living European Hamster hides in the grass. It's always so great to watch these guys. This species is endangered. Austria-2016
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A wild living European Hamster hides in the grass. It's always so great to watch these guys. This species is endangered. Austria-2016
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Aug, 2016Views
1240
Likes
Awards
Contest Finalist in Can You See Me Photo Contest
Peer Award
Absolute Masterpiece
Superb Composition
Outstanding Creativity
Top Choice
Magnificent Capture
All Star
Virtuoso
Superior Skill
Emotions
Impressed
Top Ranks
Top 10 rankTop 30 rank week 2
Top 10 rankTop 10 rank week 2Top 10 rank week 1
Categories
Same photographer See allBehind The Lens
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Behind The Lens
Location
I took this photo in Vienna where you can still find these rare wild living European Hamsters.Time
As the hamsters are active in the night it's best to take photographs of them in the early evening when there's still enough light. I've shot this one at almost 7pm and it was getting darker and darker and I was really happy to get this charming shot.Lighting
When shooting these night active European Hamsters you're happy if you get enough light for an exposure. Here I was happy that there was enough ambient light to even lighten up the background for a nice bokeh and to give the hamster nice reflections in its eyes.Equipment
I've used a Canon 5d Mk iii with a Canon 400/2.8 L IS on a bean bag for this shot.Inspiration
I love furry little guys like hamsters or squirrels and I enjoy every visit. Especially at the hamsters' locations it's very possible you're waiting for hours and they don't even show up. It's nice to shoot a photo of them in nice situations when they're interacting with each other or their habitat or when they show their typical behavior. Usually the hamsters stand up to watch the area if alerted but this shy young hamster crouched in the grass when he was hearing something behind me.Editing
As I enter many nature photo competitions where post processing is very restricted I concentrate on doing basic things like adjusting white balance, tonal correction, adjusting contrast and saturation, noise reduction and using dodge&burn techniques. Removal or inserting of parts isn't allowed.In my camera bag
Canon 5d Mkiii, Canon 16-35/4 L IS, Canon 50/1.4, Canon 135/2 L, Canon 180/3.5 L macro, Canon 400/2.8 L IS USM, bean bag, Sirui and Berlebach tripods, reflectors and diffusors, gradient filters, polarization filterFeedback
In nature photography - especially when doing wild life shots - you need patience, but you need to be on guard to use situations like this for a photo. Practice using your tele lenses in fast action situations. Doing a lot of water ski slalom photos in the past helped a lot to take this photo and don't miss the opportunity. Practicing helps to improve your technical skills, but it's good to also reflect your work frequently. There's always room for improvement and watching other photographers' work helps a lot too - not to copy their work, but to ask yourself what you like in their images and find a way to achieve that or something similar.
