Cheetah - Mum and cubs

[grumpybadger]

Another set from Kenya last September. Some are lone adult cheetah and some are a family of mum and 2 cubs.

1. Itchy nose

http://beastall.com/images/2007_Rekero/bin/images/medium/ISO_400_NR7V3443.jpg


2. Vacant stare

http://beastall.com/images/2007_Rekero/bin/images/medium/ISO_400_NR7V3432.jpg


3. Out for a stroll

http://beastall.com/images/2007_Rekero/bin/images/medium/ISO_100_NR7V3492.jpg


4. Stalking

http://beastall.com/images/2007_Rekero/bin/images/medium/ISO_400_NR7V4145.jpg

5. Look at the camera

http://beastall.com/images/2007_Rekero/bin/images/medium/ISO_320_NR7V4103.jpg

6. Watching lunch

http://beastall.com/images/2007_Rekero/bin/images/medium/ISO_800_NR7V4188.jpg

7. Early morning patrol

http://beastall.com/images/2007_Rekero/bin/images/medium/ISO_800_NR7V4206.jpg

8. View from an ant hill

http://beastall.com/images/2007_Rekero/bin/images/medium/ISO_800_NR7V4211.jpg


9. Brotherly love

http://beastall.com/images/2007_Rekero/bin/images/medium/ISO_100_NR7V4842.jpg


10. Family portrait

http://beastall.com/images/2007_Rekero/bin/images/medium/ISO_100_NR7V4859.jpg



As always, any feedback gratefully received

Thanks

Paul

[elvis]

What a great series of shots cant pick out a fav love them all.

[dod]

very nice, good to see they're not all cropped in tight too, gives a nice sense of their environment :)

[allie5]

Fantastic set! Hard to pick a fave, but 8&9 stand out just a tad.

Brilliant - Id be pleased with just one this good, let alone a whole set!

[Slapo]

Excellent use of DOF, very nice shots they are all.

[PIKEMAN]

Great set:clap: must be very rewarding to get shots of them in their natural surroundings ,one hell of an experience I imagine . Like them all

[gwocni]

Brilliant...... Anthill is a cracker.:clap:

[CTR_Chris]

Excellent set, couldnt pick a favourite as they all very good. I hope you pleased with them, I would be.
Very sharp to, Well done.

[Trex500]

First class pictures, well done. :clap::clap: Hope one day i get the chance to go and do some.

[Alison-lee]

Great photos, like 6 & 8 the best.

[macker]

Good work and as mentioned, it's nice to see more of the environment around them rather than the close in crops that we are normally forced to make when photographing this kind of subject in captivity :clap::thumbs:

[moomike]

Awesome as usual Paul, 4, 5 & 8 for me but all are very nicely done :thumbs:

[IanC_UK]

All excellent Paul, cant possibly pick a fave among them :) Jealous? Me ? of course ;)

[RobertP]

Great stuff. 5 and 6 for me but all good.

[madmitch]

Great set Paul, no 6 for me as you can almost read it,s thoughts. :clap:

[G&A Images]

number 8 :)

[PoW]

Great photos.No`s #4 #5 #8 for me.

Have you been cathing the Big Cat Diary on Ch1 lately? Fantastic footage of a cheetah and her cubs?

[a1ex2001]

Love them all a fantastic set of portraits of the family group doing what they do naturally with an excellent use of DOF, only one thats a slight disapointment to me is 6 as I want to know what she's eyeing up for breakfast so a bit more dof would have been nice!

[Stacey.PenderUK]

Stunning shots I paticularly love 6 and 8- I love the "calm before the storm" feel of 6- I just want to sit and gaze where she is.

Lovely! Thanks for sharing! =)

[Richard T]

I love no 2 and 7 :clap::clap:

[spencer]

Great photos.No`s #4 #5 #8 for me.

Have you been cathing the Big Cat Diary on Ch1 lately? Fantastic footage of a cheetah and her cubs?

Exactly what I thought when I saw these!:thumbs:

Stunning shots 5,6 & 7 are my favourite!

Spence

[ConfusedChicca]

Wow... nothing else to say.

[grumpybadger]

Thanks all. Glad you like them.

very nice, good to see they're not all cropped in tight too, gives a nice sense of their environment :)

It's something I've become aware of having done quite a lot of safari photography. The temptation is always to go in close to get detail and keeping the environment in can make a big difference to the feel of the picture.

Great set:clap: must be very rewarding to get shots of them in their natural surroundings ,one hell of an experience I imagine . Like them all

It is rewarding - truly fantastic. One of the highlights was the cubs coming to shelter under our car from the midday sun. I felt like a welcome guest in their world!

Excellent set, couldnt pick a favourite as they all very good. I hope you pleased with them, I would be.
Very sharp to, Well done.

Very pleased with them. This was the first real outing with the 500 f/4 used in anger (it was used on all the above shots) and I think that once you get used to it, it's a great help it getting decent pictures.

Great photos.No`s #4 #5 #8 for me.

Have you been cathing the Big Cat Diary on Ch1 lately? Fantastic footage of a cheetah and her cubs?

Yes, I watched BCD religously last week. This wasn't Honey they were filming as the edition just shown was recorded in September 2006 and its taken a long time to get on the telly. I've met Jonathan Scott on the Mara and had a chat when he was out filming in 2005. Great guy.

It's also interesting that number 5 doesn't get the popular vote. It's my personal favourite and is the wallpaper on my work laptop at the moment. Reminds me of a magical time when I am stuck on a train to London!

Love them all a fantastic set of portraits of the family group doing what they do naturally with an excellent use of DOF, only one thats a slight disapointment to me is 6 as I want to know what she's eyeing up for breakfast so a bit more dof would have been nice!

That's interesting feedback as I deliberately went wide open (although poor light helped with that choice I could have gone for a slow shutter speed and she was dead still and I had a window mount) to limit the DOF - the aim was to add to the mystery. I guess that didn't work too well for you?

[Glitter]

Hi - 4 & 8 stand out for me - but to be honest, I echo everyone elses thoughts.... I love them all - and yes, I am jealous!! he he he

[Les McLean]

All excellent, particularly like 2 &5

Couple of minor sugggestions, perhaps a slight dodge around the eyes in 2 to enhance the 'vacant stare'

Crop the white sky in 4 and 7, it's not doing anything, and the image could take the crops (with a touch from left or right)

The other's an observation, the bokeh in 3 is a tad distracting, it's very much like the bokeh you get from a 100-400L lens at times, not much you can do about it.

None distract from a cracking set of images though.

[grumpybadger]

Thanks for the comments Les.

I agree that the eyes in 2 could do with a lift. It is a common problem with cheetah. They have a ridge of bone over the eyes to act as a baseball cap and it means getting light in the eyes isn't easy. I'll have a play with a quick dodge at the weekend.

I've had a quick play with the sky crops on 4 and 7 and it's certainly interesting.

I must admit, I don't understand the bokeh in 3. The 500 f/4 normally delivers a superb creamy look but on that one it doesn't seem to have worked. It seems to be the cheetah behind and its spot pattern. I may have a go at a Gaussian blur in Photoshop.

Paul

[Torpedo]

Wow. They're all fantastic. As said above, the DoF is awesome.

[Chloe]

fantastic shots really hard to pick favourites but the last 2 for me :thumbs:

[Joel]

Excellent photos. Number 2 is my favourite. :D

[Ladybird]

Wow! Great stuff indeed! Has to be the family portrait for me! Awwwww :love:

[neilyb]

Kenja is on the list one of these years. Great set!!

[StewartR]

Terrific photos, all of them. My personal favourite is no. 1 - it reminds me that a cheetah is just like a domestic cat. Only larger and, er, wild. You know what I mean.