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MINE! All mine!


MINE! All mine!
Photo Information
Copyright: Callie de Wet (Callie) Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 1101 W: 95 N: 2610] (7555)
Genre: Animals
Medium: Color
Date Taken: 2003-04
Categories: Mammals
Details: (Fill) Flash: Yes
Photo Version: Original Version
Theme(s): Great cats - Grandes felinos, African Felines [view contributor(s)]
Date Submitted: 2004-09-14 13:55
Viewed: 5820
Points: 36
[Note Guidelines] Photographer's Note
This is not meant to be crude nor to shock! I contemplated more than a year whether to post this one, & there are a couple of his mates as well that can be posted as well. Old TE posters will recognise Cutie, the 3 & 1/2 month old female leopard cub, although she is not in her cute face or phase here. This is life in the bush, the survival of the fittest, & the leopard normally emerges as the winner in any altercation with an impala. Impala has an “M-mark” on their buttocks, much like the M in MacDonald’s; hence also known as Fast-food on the run! They are fast as well, but a striking leopard is like greased lightning. On our second trip to Kruger, we saw such a kill, and the cat walked right up to my car door! I could touch him, he was so near!;& the camera was safely somewhere in the back of the car! This opportunity has never raised its head since in our car. This picture is not gory, but depicts the real life situation. When the buck is killed, normally by a tight grip on the neck or throat, the leopard nearly always will remove it to some place save, often a tree. This is because hyenas & lions rob their pray. They also open the stomach, to let out the intestines. This is the pink you can see on the picture. Note the massive paws on this little tyke! Her mom caught the leopard the previous evening, then left the impala to fetch Cutie, who was several kilometres away. This was her first kill, so she was very excited! I must have taken close to 300 slides of her & her mother in the 3 hours or so we were with them. This was over 2 sessions. The Lodge where we go in Sabi Sands takes you out on open game vehicles on 2 trips of around 3 hours each; in the morning and late afternoon into the night. So you get dusk & down on the trips, plus the Big 5, if you are lucky. I will have to scan some more slides to continue this as a series. Let me know, please, whether you would like to see more of Cutie & her mom.
Picture taken in April 2003 with Nikon F90X, SB28 flash, Sigma 120-300 F2.8 lens, monopod &/or hand held, there were just too much action to remember details. Sensia 100 slide, Epson flatbed scanner, some cropping, USM etc. Did this long ago – hope you find it interesting.
carper, gerhardt, jhm, Robbrown, ellis49, danbachmann, RAP, PDP, Jax, extramundi, hasboy, AndyB, Bac, Alan_Kolnik has marked this note useful
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Discussions
ThreadThread Starter Messages Updated
To PDP: ImpalaCallie 2 09-14 16:10
To japie: Pack up and goCallie 1 09-14 15:31
To jhm: DankieCallie 1 09-14 14:20
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Critiques [Translate]

  • Great 
  • carper Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 1973 W: 119 N: 2582] (8439)
  • [2004-09-14 14:02]

Het is schitterend Callie,
Het is bloederig maar werkelijkheid en meestal eerlijkheid. Only to kill for live. Prachtige scherpe opname met alle details en zoals altijd een prachtige note. Ja ik ken ze nog van TE Callie. Maar het is prachtig. Erg goed werk.

Now this is a superb catch. What a moment. I have seen Leopard feeding shots before, but never a cub trying his hand at it. The colours are breathtaking and the detail way up there. Materpiece Callie. I love to see more. Cutie is and will always be a wild big african cat, let's not forget that.

  • Great 
  • jhm Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Note Writer [C: 893 W: 0 N: 507] (1853)
  • [2004-09-14 14:18]
  • [+]

Callie, hier zie ik nogmaals de schepte zoals op TE, spijtig zie ik u daar niet meer, maar hier op TN zijn uw foto's van grote waarde, altijd scherp en bijzonder afgewerkt, schitterend werk hier!

Spot on callie , i am glad you had the courage to post it, even better to see cutie again showing she is not a picture poster to go Aaaaah. over.
I think I would of been tempted to clone out those couple of distracting OOF twig in front of the carcass, this is only a minnor nit and in noway affect the truth of the image. NICE ONE Callie.

Very good Callie.
You have catch a great moment.
Good colours and great sharpness with goos details.
Great note.

  • Great 
  • RAP Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 2524 W: 345 N: 2373] (7405)
  • [2004-09-14 15:16]

Impactante escena Callie, además de tu relato tan interesante.
Excelente composicion, gran iluminacion y perspectiva.
Superior... realmente.

Impressive scene Callie, in addition to your so interesting story.
Excellent composition, great ilumination and perspective.
Superb... really.

  • Great 
  • PDP Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor [C: 2821 W: 344 N: 3779] (11769)
  • [2004-09-14 15:21]
  • [+]

Callie, I love the picture and it's a very good document of nature...I can't quite work out what is waht around and behind the leopard though, would you be kind enough to explain? Great work!

  • Great 
  • japie Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 1814 W: 100 N: 1904] (5187)
  • [2004-09-14 15:25]
  • [+]

Dink nou nt as hierdie met die nuwe lens was! Beautiful shot showing that Small big cats have to eat too. Unfortunately we tend to forget that in nature we are the only ones with table manners. This shot makes me want to pack up IT and take pictures all the time. Groetnis

Callie, As you say this "life in the bush". At first glance thumbnail found myself squinting into the page going, what the heck? Great realism-Great opportunity to cash in! This will have to go down at TN as the "Best in Gore" category!! Found your notes very interesting also.

  • Great 
  • Jax Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Note Writer [C: 77 W: 0 N: 150] (500)
  • [2004-09-14 18:31]

Wow that is some capture. Colours, composition everyhting just spot on.

This is trek nature indeed. Thanks very much. The softness of the photo makes the dramatism smaller. I love this one.

fantastic Callie. excellent capture, very sharp, great moment.

  • Great 
  • AndyB Gold Star Critiquer/Silver Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 1366 W: 32 N: 1351] (3982)
  • [2004-09-15 4:09]

A very nice capture.
Lovely vivid colours and nice detail.
Excellent note as always.
Very well done.

  • Great 
  • Bac Gold Star Critiquer/Silver Note Writer [C: 93 W: 3 N: 33] (486)
  • [2004-09-15 9:14]

Good shot, it's the life, and a terrible end for the impala

Impressionante photo Callie. Les couleurs sont crues, cruelles mais tellement justes. La profondeur de champs est très bien réfléchie et très professionnelle. Merci. Rudy

  • Great 
  • deud Gold Star Critiquer/Silver Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 438 W: 11 N: 534] (2540)
  • [2004-09-20 8:01]

Cruel world with cruel laws!

Great photo. These animals are not as cute and cuddly as they look! Thanks for your copious notes, very interesting. You were so lucky to see a kill and to photograph it. The sun sparkling off the blood almost looks unreal. wow.

Phenomenal picture of real life in the wild (or, at least, a game reserve). I don't think you need to apologize for the blood - you can go to a restaurant and see humans eating almost raw meat as well.

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