Autumn Deer

Silverpenguin · Oct 17, 2009

I finally got out again with the camera! Seems like forever since I last used the 600mm (July was the last use I think) so it was great to finally get out for a couple of hours. Headed to Bushy Park to check out the rut. Lots of noise but no action. My fav shots was this younger deer in side light, caused by low level sun late in the afternoon which really brought the autumnal colours to life. I processed for the contrasty look on purpose, there should still be detail visible in the shadow areas but didn't bring it out too much on purpose.

Cropped by about 25% all round for web presentation so you can see the details a little better. Actually looking now I see I have given a slight bias to cropping from the top so the subject is a little too central, oops, user error!

D300 with 600mm

jack lumber · Oct 18, 2009

NOISE! I love the way the ears are lit.

ErectedGryphon · Oct 18, 2009

I like it, I've been trying to get a shot like this myself.

IMO if the shot is interesting enough, has good composition, etc.., then the noise isn't all that important, as long as its minimized. That said, :thumbup: :thumbup:.

Flower Child · Oct 19, 2009

This is one of the best deer shots I've ever seen. I normally wouldn't go for a subject that is dead center in the frame, but centering works perfectly for this one! That baby deer couldn't get any cuter, the lighting is amazing and adds great atmosphere to the image. I can literally feel what that time of day feels like just from looking at your image. The softness of the grass and background are great and just makes the sharpness and shape of the deer stand out that much more. And love the fact that he is looking RIGHT AT YOU. There is nothing I can criticize about your photo except that I'm extremely jealous I didn't take it.

The other day I was in the woods fairly close to my house taking some pictures of some wildflowers and out jumps this deer right in front of me, but I couldn't get my setting changed fast enough to catch the deer and ended up missing the shot. Do you have any tips for me on shooting deer, other than being in the right place at the right time? Did you sit in one spot and wait for animals to come to you, or did you just come upon this deer while you were walking. I would love to get a deer shot, but I'm not sure what kind of approach to take.

Silverpenguin · Oct 22, 2009

Thank you for the comments

Flower Child, I'm really glad you like the shot. This particular shot was taken in a park where the deer are free to roam and fend for themselves, although confined to an area that is maybe 8 miles square, so they quite easy to find and photograph. It's usually just a case of find them, then sit and wait for them to get in to a position you want. With this one I got lucky, I turned round and spotted it walking my way.

Out in the 'real' wild it would be more a case of trying to find out where they have been spotted in your local area and then staking the area out to see where and when they appear. Vert time consuming but then that's what makes it all the better when you get the shot