emench
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Behind The Lens
Location
This photo was taken while I was on a small hike along Marble Canyon in Yoho National Park, BC. Along the way, I was spoiled by seeing a whole show all of, what I later found out were, Gold-Mantled Ground Squirrels.Time
I shot this photo mid-day at about 1 or 2 in the afternoon, and since it was cloudy, it allowed for very soft lighting conditions which were perfect to make sure that the squirrel stood out from the already distracting background.Lighting
It was an overcast day, so getting the perfect lighting for the shot was not much of a challenge. However, with the overcast lighting it needed a few post-processing tweaks.Equipment
This photo was shot on a Canon Rebel t3i with a Canon EF-S 55-250mm f/4-5.6 lens. A tripod didn't seem prudent to use with how fast the squirrels were darting about.Inspiration
Even though I was walking along a beautiful and geologically fascinating gorge, I couldn't help but become distracted from the main attraction with so many of the cutest animals I've ever seen running around. Instead of taking photos of the gorge, the rest of the hike I shot squirrels and was lucky to have this particular squirrel pose on a rock for me for a few minutes. He was also very considerate and gave me some pretty high quality modelling poses.Editing
I captured this shot before I started shooting raw. Yes, I was not very smart back then. The only adjustments made were increased contrast and increased saturation to counteract the effects of a cloudy day.In my camera bag
Since I have a small bag and limited space for lenses, I normally pack 3 lenses that can be pretty versatile for any unexpected subjects I may encounter which happens spectacularly often. I normally carry a Canon EF 50mm f/1.8, a Canon EF-S 55-250mm f/4-5.6, a Canon EF-S 10-22mm f/3.5-4.5. I also carry around a tripod most everywhere and a 10 stop ND filter for landscapes.Feedback
Being a photographer of any kind you should almost always bring the equiptment that you think you won't need to bring. Nintey-Nine point nine percent of the time when you leave a certain lens at home, not thinking you'd need it, you regret it. I don't know how many times I've had this happen and I'm sure lucky That for some reason I decided to lug around a 55-250mm lens to a canyon walk even though I was positive I wouldn't use it. You never know what you will see so always pack for the unknown.