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I see you !


I see you !
Photo Information
Copyright: Valerie Schnepp (valy67) Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 1880 W: 59 N: 2915] (8733)
Genre: Animals
Medium: Color
Date Taken: 2006-09-17
Categories: Birds
Camera: Canon 350D, Canon EF 55-200mm 4.5-5.6 II USM
Photo Version: Original Version
Theme(s): Parc Animalier de Sainte-Croix [view contributor(s)]
Date Submitted: 2006-11-11 4:06
Viewed: 1550
Favorites: 2 [view]
Points: 70
[Note Guidelines] Photographer's Note
Since I have visited the Birds of Prey center near my home, I am really fascinated by these birds, so I have decided to post a whole series of pictures about them on TN. This is my post Nr 2, a wonderful Griffon Vulture I met in the Parc Naturel de sainte-Croix.

All the vultures in this park have been wounded - most of them fell from their nest as babies and broke their wings. They have been rescued but are now unable to fly, this means that they cannot be reintroduced in the nature, so they have been offered to this wildlife park where they can live a beautiful life.

Eurasian Griffon Vulture 5Gyps fulvus)

Light sandy-brown color. Weight is about 15 pounds. Has an eight-foot wing span, but short legs with weak, blunt toes. The horn-colored beak is slender and relatively weak. The long goose-like neck is thinly covered with down, with a distinct ruff of quill and down feathers at the base of the neck. Tail is rounded.

Widely distributed around the Mediterranean, ranging east into India and south across the savannas of Africa. Sometimes found as far north as the Scandinavian countries. Prefers barren areas with few trees, mountain steppes and high plateaus.

Feeds on large dead mammals, taking only muscle meat and viscera. Their distended crops and gizzards can hold over 13 pounds of meat at a time.

The friendliest and most social of the vultures. Non-territorial. There is some indication that pairs mate for life. They are "home" bodies and do not migrate. Nests are always placed on cliffs even when trees are available. They are built of twigs and grass and much excrement, often on the remains of previous years' nests and are found in a variety of sites, from well-protected rock caves to exposed ledges. 10-15 pairs may share nesting grounds. A single egg is hatched, occasionally two. Incubation period is unusually long, between 48-50 days. Young are covered with pale buffy down; when they leave the nest after 3-4 months they look almost like adults. Life span is 40 years.

Unlike New World vultures that rely on a sense of smell, Griffon Vultures rely on vision to search for food. The short down covering the head and neck is easy to keep clean. Dozens of griffon vultures gather by pools of water to bathe and then stand with wings extended to dry out.

Built for soaring flight, griffons may cruise for 6 or 7 hours and 100 miles looking for food. When one vulture drops to a carcass, others see it and congregate. It is not unusual to have 50 vultures waiting around a kill for a chance to feed. This relatively weak vulture depends on Lappet Faced Vultures or Maribou Storks to open up fresh carcasses.
gelor, dew77, pankajbajpai, ddg, jmp, horia, Alex99, ramthakur, coasties, DuFrank, vanderschelden, SunToucher, nainnain, mikou, izler, jeanpaul, SkyF, jcoowanitwong, eruyanik, saguzar, lovenature, SchwebagMike, aido, boreocypriensis has marked this note useful
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Discussions
ThreadThread Starter Messages Updated
To CatStevens: Thank youvaly67 1 11-23 15:09
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Critiques [Translate]

hi valerie.
lovely shot. well composed. nice focus and sharpness. nice pov. good dof.
well done.
tfs
regards
pankaj

  • Great 
  • dew77 Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 4774 W: 294 N: 4020] (13209)
  • [2006-11-11 4:13]

Hello Valerie,
Funny capture.Pose of vulture and eye contact are amazing.I liked POV,1/3 framing,blurred BG,use of light,clear details,sharpness and composition also a lot.Excellent work!Have a great weekend...
TFS...:-)

  • Great 
  • ddg Gold Star Critiquer/Silver Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 855 W: 23 N: 942] (5111)
  • [2006-11-11 4:14]

Bonjour Valerie, la "mise en scéne" est magnifique et le regard du monstre fait froid dans le dos!! j'aime beaucoup le tronc d'arbre en travers et les plantes verticales plus legeres en arriére plan. Félicitation pour ce beau portrait de Vautour.

  • Great 
  • gelor Gold Star Critiquer/Silver Note Writer [C: 126 W: 3 N: 12] (523)
  • [2006-11-11 4:18]

Bonjour Valérie,
S U P E R B E ! Saisi dans une attitude caractéristique, ce bel oiseau est vraiment ici très bien présenté. Qualité technique et mise en page exceptionnels. Félicitations.
Gérard

  • Great 
  • jmp Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 1740 W: 95 N: 2273] (8411)
  • [2006-11-11 4:18]

Hola Valerie,
Bella foto, con una composición y una postura excelentes. Colores naturales y una gran sensación de relieve forman una imagen atractiva y original.
Un saludo, José M.

beautiful and origianl angle, TFS Ori

  • Great 
  • horia Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 2169 W: 218 N: 4383] (14900)
  • [2006-11-11 5:03]

WOW! Now this is definately the picture of the day!
Very impressive capture, Valery!
The POV and composition is magnificent!
Also the details and DOF are amazing and the natural colors and tones are lovely. Also great framing and very well managed exposure.
A truely great shot!

Bravo and have a great weekend
Horia

  • Great 
  • Alex99 Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 3584 W: 143 N: 5669] (18531)
  • [2006-11-11 5:11]

Hi Valerie.
What a nice captured scene. The pose of this majestic bird is amazing as well as the title and note. You have composed and framing shot with great skillfulness. Perfect detailed foreground and, as usual, beautiful excellent blurred BG. BRAVO and my best regards.
Alexei.

Hello Valerie!
An incredibly well shot picture of this vulture. Impossible to find faults with point of view, sharpness of focus, DOF, colours and details.
The placement of the subject to the extreme left with the moss covered log filling the entire right side of the picture enhances the natural setting of the shot.
The expression on the bird's face suggests character.
I must congratulate you for this excellent composition.
Thanks and bye.
Ram

Hi Valerie

Well done on a great shot. Good composition, clear sharp details and wonderful eye contact. TFS.

Hehehe! He's looking mean! I like the composition a lot; the way you've placed him on the left is very original. The background is filled with vivid contrasts, enough to keep the image well balanced as a whole.

Hi Valerie,
Really a great image...
I love it.
The way it looks right intio the camera and the plumage around his head...everything is fine!
TFS
Annick

Hi Valerie,
What an awesome photo. Such great quality and such a beautiful pose captured. Really well framed with the trunk as a great base. Good work on the DOF and exposure. I agree with Horia...picture of the day!
TFS,
Niek

Hello Valerie,
Superb image!
That expression is priceless, and captured with great skill... DOF spot on, and an impressive composition...
The plumage is very well reproduced, with fine details and great natural colours!
Greetings,
Pablo -

That's great!

hi VALERIE
félicitations pour cette vue de vautour tres impressionante, bonne réussite, supers détails
merci du partage
amitiès
edith

  • Great 
  • mikou Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 840 W: 67 N: 1311] (5269)
  • [2006-11-12 4:32]

Hi Valerie.
It is beautiful composition,really.Perfect POV and focus.Very good distance by the blurry background.Beautiful colours and fine sharp details.Amazing work!
Thank you for sharing.
Greetings Milos

  • Great 
  • hester Gold Star Critiquer/Silver Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 1515 W: 18 N: 3165] (11638)
  • [2006-11-12 15:29]

This is great, it looks like a Jim Henson creation. Lovely eye contact. Nice POV, sharp details and excellent DOF

PT all out today

TFS

Karan

  • Great 
  • izler Gold Star Critiquer/Silver Note Writer [C: 1399 W: 3 N: 30] (504)
  • [2006-11-13 10:46]

hello Valerie
i think this is dangerous shoting because it is watching you :)
composition, point of view, blured background, depth of field, colours, focus, sharpness and details are great
TFS
regards
izler

Hello Valerie
Une excellente photo de ce joli spécimen d'oiseau que l'on ne voit pas souvent sur le site. ,les couleurs sont justes ainsi que les détails.J'aime bien la pose spéciale de ce vautour. Félicitations pour la belle composition.

Merci et bravo...JP

  • Great 
  • SkyF Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 2233 W: 188 N: 1929] (8127)
  • [2006-11-22 19:52]

Bonjour Valerie,
very nice shot, the pose is very good he really focuses in on you. Great sharpness and wonderful details.
Sky

Hello Valerie,
A mean looking vulture. Composition, sharpness, and exposure are great. Beautiful natural colors and off background. A lovely picture. TFS.
JC

Wow! What an astonishing catch on this interesting bird with a superb pov and moment! Eye contact may could be frighteen to me! Sharpness is wonderful and colours too! Love the mossy parts on the decaying wood! Also a great framing!
Bravo Valérie! This post made me speechless!
Ersin

Hola Valerie,
Preciosa y bella imagen, me encanta el encuadre, la luz suave y la amenazadora mirada del buitre.
Excelente!
Hernán

Hello Valerie
What an awesome shot! I just love the pose of this griffon, looking so bold and large. Excellent colour, DOF and detail. AAAA++++
TFS Janice

Well...now that is a pose! You placed him perfectly in the frame with just enough foreground elements and blurred background to make it a very interesting shot. He seems to be looking at you with great interest. : )

TFS
Evelynn : )

  • Great 
  • pvb Gold Star Critiquer/Silver Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 376 W: 16 N: 495] (1861)
  • [2006-12-25 5:24]

Hi Valerie,
This picture is perfect. I realy like your composition with the vulture on the left and the tree he is sitting on in front.
Good pose of your model and good focus, details and dof.
thanks
Joyeux Noël
paula

Salut Valérie,
Quelle magnifque foto! Tout est parfait, composton, couleurs, champs de profondeur ... félicitations! Et puis, surtout, quel magnifique oiseau.
Merci de partager, Mike

  • Great 
  • aido Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor [C: 1044 W: 156 N: 1218] (4046)
  • [2007-01-21 13:56]

Hello Valerie,
I like this image a lot, the offset composition I think works very well because of the lines created by the log in the foreground. Great detail and good DOF. A little OE on the head but a difficult situation I think as underexposing would destroy a lot of detail. Great work from you and I'm glad that somebody else here likes these raptors as much as I do :-)
Best regards,
Adrian

bonjour valerie
ce vautour me fait penser a un magicien qui deplacerais sa tête.
une photo nette et bien exposée.
laurent

Impresionante toma. Excelente composición y colores. Magistral

hi valerie!
This is a great shot and pose of this great valture.
Great POV and good DOF
Well Done TFS
Jemima

Hi Valerie
This is the best vulture picture I have ever seen, excellent detail and colour. The composition is perfect. TFS
Regards
Mark

Great shot! Excellent posture of the Griffon vulture. The colours and sharpness are also good. Nice composition. The low pov, in line with the eyes of the vulture works very well. Thanks for sharing.

Hi Valerie, whata a great posture:) well fit with the title:)
Superb in all around. i also liked the side composition.
TFS and cheers,
Bayram

  • Great 
  • foozi Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Note Writer [C: 1339 W: 0 N: 2569] (9065)
  • [2009-01-28 1:33]

Hi Valreie,
this is superbs. It looks as if he trying to get you and going straight into your face.
Well shot in great sharpness, the position is excellent and the composition is splendid.
Action oriented shotm, that catch attention immediately.

regards,
Foozi

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