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Unusual - for Ersin


Unusual - for Ersin
Photo Information
Copyright: Horia Bogdan (horia) Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 2171 W: 231 N: 4052] (13473)
Genre: Animals
Medium: Color
Date Taken: 2006-08-27
Categories: Reptiles
Camera: Canon PowerShot S2 IS, Hoya Close-Up 52mm +1, +2, +4
Exposure: f/3.2, 1/40 seconds
Photo Version: Original Version, Workshop
Theme(s): Reptiles of Europe [view contributor(s)]
Date Submitted: 2006-09-09 6:20
Viewed: 1613
Points: 78
[Note Guidelines] Photographer's Note
I decided to include some new herpetology shots in my gallery, so i had quite a difficult choise to make: on which column?
Since i still have pretty many dragonfly pictures yet to post and still some interesting grasshoppers/crickets/mantis-es to show, i decided to sacrifice the butterfly column for now...hope i didn't make the wrong choise :)

I promised a very dear friend of mine, that i met here on TN, that i would show him (and everybody else, too, of course) some nice snake shots from my last trip...and this is one...specially for Ersin

Some of you might be very surprised to learn that the snake in the image in actually the most common snake in Europe...Yep, nothing more and nothing less - a Natrix natrix, only with an unusual coloration :)
The melanistic specimens are to be found over the entire areal of the species, more lickly in higher, mountain areas.
I'm positive that, since the large number of posts about this species, there is no need for a biological description. However, if any of you would like one, please tell me and i'll upload on as soon as possible :)

I think info on the shot is perhaps a bit more relevant: we found it near a beach, late in the day. At first we didn't really know what it was. Only after catching it and taking a closer look we saw that is was a common grass snake. He was kind enough to coil and pose a bit or me ;) Unfortunately the light was very poor and since i have no tripod, i had to improvise and set down on the sand and used it for support :) I was lucky enough to get a bit more light on the snake's head...and this is what came out.

Hope you like it :)
I posted a Workshop with a different view, in case you were curious on the color.

PP - with Photoshop: sharpens, auto contrast and levels.
Reduced noise - with Neat Image


Full EXIF:
Camera: Canon S2 IS
Extra Lens: Hoya Close-up +1
Shutter speed: 1/40
F-Stop: f/3.2
Focal Length: 70mm
Metering Mode: Center Weigthed Average
ISO: 100
Flash: No
Support: on the ground :)
TOD: about 8 PM
markula, claudine, wkshelton, thor68, marhowie, Luis52, Hil, mbasil, carper, Signal-Womb, dew77, RAP, Robbrown, aido, elefantino, Bufo, metcher, eruyanik, goutham_ramesh, limier, jcoowanitwong, CTP, Janice, TAZ, manyee, mikou, Shoot_Score, SkyF has marked this note useful
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Discussions
ThreadThread Starter Messages Updated
To Shoot_Score: thanks :)horia 1 12-29 06:39
To snowfalken: about...horia 1 09-17 02:43
To Janice: ...nope :)horia 1 09-13 06:57
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Critiques [Translate]

Hi Horia,
Superb macro.Great composition.Perfect picture.
Greetings.

hAyAti

Sal Horia!
Excellent shot taken from low POV thus putting the snake's head against blurred and contrasting background. Very good sharpness and exposure, the subject filling out the entire frame. Congratulations,
Mark

Hi Horia,
This is an amazing POV! Details are clear and sharp, no need of a tripod here :) You did really great with composition. I love snakes and this one is a real beauty! Ersin would like it very much, I'm sure about it :-) TFS,
Claudine

Hello Horia,

Not a mistake at all, excellent colors, bg, POv DOF perfect detail,s very crisp, nicly composed and excellent use of DOF Nice work,

TFS kyle

Muy buen trabajo, muy bien realizada con buena nitidez. Enhorabuena y saludos,
www.xente.mundo-r.com/briones

yeah, superb shot, horia! :-)
nice to see a snake here on TN.
excellent low pov on eye-level and a great "rolled-up"-pose.
looking foward to the next ones & take care, thorsten.

Hi Horia,
Nice shot.
Well focused and sharp, with your DOF isolating the head in this frame very well..Excellent exposure, details.
Very well done.

  • Great 
  • Luis52 Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Note Writer [C: 1025 W: 5 N: 2899] (10487)
  • [2006-09-09 11:01]

Horia.- Bella imagen, Exelentes detalles, me agrada la cantidad de luz en esta foto. La nitidez es muy buena.
Tu Nota es muy buena tambien. Saludos Luis52.

  • Great 
  • Hil Gold Star Critiquer/Silver Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 750 W: 13 N: 1453] (4981)
  • [2006-09-09 12:01]

Hi Horia,

Superb shot, I love the pose of the Snake in its coil, the sharpness it nice and crisp and the colours are lovely with a great blurred backgroung too.

TFS Hilary :)

Great shot, Horia. Good angle, nice and close, with and an amazing view of the eye (the most important part of a portrait). Good light too. Really well done. With regard to the presenatiaton here I find the bg just a bit distracting, though, and would suggest a tighter crop. I think it could be a bit brighter, too.
Mike

Trčs belle bęte!

  • Great 
  • carper Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 2192 W: 124 N: 2600] (8410)
  • [2006-09-09 13:42]

what can I say Horia,
this is a great shot a good composition and a perfect sharpness and a good dof, very nice job.
gr. jaap

Hello Horia, very good capture with excellent POV and effective DOF. The grassy background adds to your composition IMO. Very well done.

Nice one, Horia!
TFS
Ralf

  • Great 
  • dew77 Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 4964 W: 298 N: 4027] (13131)
  • [2006-09-09 16:42]

Hello Horia,
Wonderful capture.I liked POV,sharpness,clear details,framing,3D effect and composition a lot.
TFS...:-)

  • Great 
  • RAP Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 2524 W: 345 N: 2373] (7405)
  • [2006-09-09 16:54]

Bravo mi amigo por una excelente presentación de estas dos imágenes.
Gran POV y nitidez para capturar la silueta de este ofidio con adecuada iluminación y DOF.
Gracias por compartirla.
Saludos... Ricardo

Bravo! my friend for an excellent presentation of two images.
Great POV and clarity to capture the silhouette of this ophidian with appropriate illumination and DOF.
Thank you for sharing.
Greetings... Ricardo

  • Great 
  • aido Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 1095 W: 169 N: 1218] (4046)
  • [2006-09-09 22:59]

Hello Horia,
I think this is an excellent shot, the perfect detail and texture on the head combined with the low POV, shallow DOF and distant background make it quite a striking image. Perfect exposure in my opinion and an interesting subject, I would not have known this is a grass snake. I don't like the workshop, it's overexposed part of the BG, I think this is perfect as it is. Great work.
Regards,
Adrian

  • Great 
  • jmp Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 1836 W: 94 N: 2341] (8407)
  • [2006-09-10 9:53]

Hi Horia,
I like this excellent shot and the ws. Difficult to decide what is the best. Perfect colors, sharpness, pov, dov, pose and composition.
TFS, José M.

Ciao Horia, nice shot of this Natrix.
Detsils on the head are super.
Good light and compo.
Really well managed.
Well done my friend!

Andrea

Nice shot, it is really a strangely coloured animal!

  • Great 
  • Bufo Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 422 W: 73 N: 984] (4241)
  • [2006-09-10 14:45]

Hi Horia,
amazing shot and a nice idea of putting the top view as a workshop picture.
Even with a shutter speed of 1/40 it looks pretty sharp. The DOV is very well chosen.
Compliments, Jacob

  • Great 
  • Graal Gold Star Critiquer/Silver Workshop Editor/Silver Note Writer [C: 787 W: 31 N: 20] (5002)
  • [2006-09-10 14:47]

Hi Horia,
interesting view, unusual snake. Good colours and DOF. Well done photo.
Gr., Aleksander

What a nice guy! Interesting DOF. Good focus, sharpness on head. Peaceful informative BG.

Hi Horia :-)
Thank you for your kindness my friend! This one is really unusual and beautiful also. i thought about the id before read your notes and i didn't give any chance to grass snake, i thought that cobra, boa or piton it can be!!! Then looking to European species, i decided that's a weak idea, lol :-) But really i didn't think that it could be grass snake. Here is a wonderful low pov and what a big bead eye it has!! i like the pose with the head up and coiled body and with your pov we can see the tail also. Spot on dof along the snake, remainings are blurry. Sharpness, details, pov, framing all are wonderful indeed! Your ws post is great also, especially i like that triangular shape a lot. Thank you so much for this beauty :-) btw, my internet connection had been cut off in the weekend, cause i had no time for paying bills these days, especially cause of the stressed work (which i hate!!). So i get my connection today and get a chance to see my wonderful snake:-)
Thank you and best regards!
Ersin

A beautiful picture. I like the composition and the position of the head in this shot. the light on the head makes it interesting
TFS
Goutham R

Hi Horia
I am the last one that I will shot a snake because I dont like them.And I don't now why.But I like very much to see them only in photos.Here you 've done a perfect job.
Great timing POV colors and a nice BG
TFS and see you

Hi Horia,
A fastastic shot. The snake is perfectly coiled and posed for you. Composition, sharpness, pov, are great. The blurred background give depth to this picture. The snake almost jump out. Congratulations.
JC

  • Great 
  • CTP Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Note Writer [C: 774 W: 6 N: 1107] (3183)
  • [2006-09-11 13:57]

Hi Horia,
Excellent snake capture my friend.
I like your pov,dof,focus,sharpness,blurred bg,details,textures,note and framing.TFS
Chris

  •      
  • takos1 Gold Star Critiquer/Silver Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 276 W: 25 N: 204] (2575)
  • [2006-09-11 17:33]

Splendida foto Horia!
Bellissimi i dettagli della testa della biscia!

Ciao e grazie.
Franco
(sorry... punti domani)

Hello Horia,
Well framed and captured with great details!
Nothing for me to photograph, camera shake would ruin the image...
Greetings,
Pablo -

  • Great 
  • osse Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Note Writer [C: 1029 W: 0 N: 90] (7759)
  • [2006-09-12 17:45]

Nice shot Horia
Great sharpnes, details, colours, light and POV.
Well done mf

osse

Much, much better than dragonflies Horia!
I like to see the snakes on TN, and I think you show this one very well. I like the low POV, but is Natrix natrix poisonous? TFS
Janice

  • Great 
  • TAZ Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 2385 W: 50 N: 3170] (10926)
  • [2006-09-14 11:52]

Brrrrr. Snake are not my friend ;-) But Your shot is good and interesting. Sharpness is spot on head and DOF is ok.
Congratulations Horia and TFS.

Ceau Hori, wonderful photo, brilliant composition and POV! TFS - Xplorator Radu

Hi Horia,

I think the decision to settle the camera on the ground was mandatory for the success of this photo. It was the key factor for this outstanding composition and excellent eye-level POV. It makes the snake look so huge! The picture is sharp and perfectly exposed. I also like the perspective you created using the DOF. A very good job and a great dedication my friend! Bravo! In my opinion your pictures looks 100 times better than the one in the workshop!

Cheers,
Eddie

I don't see many snakes on TN, thanks for posting this one.
Really excellent POV, nice pose and a good background. Colours are quite muted but that's the time of day, I guess.
Well done.

  • Great 
  • manyee Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 3119 W: 236 N: 5954] (20104)
  • [2006-09-23 3:07]

This is another super shot of a snake.
You do seem to run into them a lot. : P
Sharp details and well saturated colors.
I like the pose of the snake, and your POV.
TFS. : )

  • Great 
  • mikou Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 863 W: 73 N: 1348] (5265)
  • [2006-09-28 1:41]

Hi Horia,
this is excellent pose.Superb sharpness and good BG.Perfect details.Well done,very nice macro.

TFS Milos

A very nice shot, Horia.
Lovely looking Grass Snake in a interesting pose!
A good low POV, nice details and lighting.
TFS
Alex

My goodness Horia, how do yu get these snakes to pose for you?

I especially like the shot in the WS! A double doughnut,pretzel... and such a cute piece of tail hanging out!

On this main shot I have to say it has everything I like...
Patterns within patterns: the coil and then the snakeskin!
Bravo!

I would appreciate a biological description! TIA, ;j.

PS I am sorry I was not on TN much earlier!

PSS Likely your snake would prey - and not pray - before eating my "Whiskers" eh!

Great shot Horia!
Here is my favorite snake story for you! Growing up in south Louisiana I had a pet snake every summer even if it were for only five minutes until I turned it loose. When I joined the Army I spent two years in South Korea and never saw any snakes. My second summer there I was missing having one alot, so I went to a Korean pet store and asked if he had any snakes. The owner said no in a manner that told me he would not want to carry them. I told him I had money and if he got me a snake I'd pay him. He agreed and called me in a couple of weeks to pickup a beautiful approx 3' long snake that looked like a corn snake, but I'm not sure what kind it was.

Any how I kept my snake in a metal wall locker and I shared the room with another man from Louisiana that was not fond of snakes. One night after drinking a little too much...;-( I don't do that any more...;-) I returned to my room to find the air condition turned so cold by my roommate that I was worried about the health of my snake.

So, I opened the wall-locker and grabbed my snake. I climbed under my covers and tossed the snake on top thinking it could now take care of itself and find its own warmth. I fell sound asleep.

The next morning I was in light stages of sleep and felt a thud at the foot of my bed followed by a string of expletives.

I sat up to find my roommate sitting up in his bed just a cussing me, "Row-Bear!!! If you ever put that snake on me again I'm going to kill you and it too!" He was not very happy.

It seemed the snaked crawled out of my bed into his bed. He was sleeping on his back. He felt a weight on his chest and opened his eyes. He was eyeball to eyeball with the snake sticking its tongue out at him. He tossed it onto my bed as quickly as he could.

He always believed I put that snake on him. Finally, the last time I saw him I told him how he had the air turned cold enough to kill the snake so I just turned it loose in the room and it was just seeking out his own kind when it crawled into his bed, and evidently found him! grin!

We had a good laugh!

I hope you enjoyed the story my friend! I enjoyed the picture!
TFS,
Dave

  • Great 
  • SkyF Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 2390 W: 194 N: 1991] (8113)
  • [2007-02-06 9:56]

Hello Horia,
a very good close up, note that I'm not saying wonderful or nice, as snakes frighten me no matter how harmless ;-). The quality of this shot is excellent, especially for the light
quality you encountered. Great DOF and the sharpness is very nice. Very well composed the snake was very cooperative to coil up for you.
TFS..Sky

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