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High & Dry


High & Dry
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: 2002-05
Categories: Mammals
Details: (Fill) Flash: Yes
Photo Version: Original Version, Workshop
Theme(s): Great cats - Grandes felinos, African Felines, Felidae of the world: Second series, Selen's Favorites [view contributor(s)]
Date Submitted: 2004-09-17 16:20
Viewed: 5002
Favorites: 1 [view]
Points: 22
[Note Guidelines] Photographer's Note
When we found Cutie the first time, she was below the trees on the bank of a dry riverbed – yesterday’s post. The one bank is about 6 m higher than the opposite bank. The game rangers that do the driving will really work their hearts out to get one to a sighting. Cutie promptly left us when she was discovered, and disappeared into the thickets on the high bank. I think the place where we went down must have been nearly 45º down and with an equal side slope. The seat of the Landover was nearly level with the ground on the right. A scary trip, but we were caught in the frenzy of the hunt. We slowly drove through the thick river sand, our eyes locked on the trees above us, sweeping, shifting, sifting information. We knew she should be somewhere, we only had to find her!. She was safely tucked into the thicket in the top branches of a tree, as you can see on the photograph. If not aware of her presence, one can miss her totally, where she is hiding amongst in the thorny branches of the acacias. Leopards are loners, like all members of the cat family, bar lions. Lions are the only social group of felines. Leopards only stay together for a short time when the female is in heat. She has one to three cubs, which she raise alone. Mortality rate is very high amongst the cubs. Less than 50% makes it to their first year. For this reason, the female hides her cubs and moves then on a regular basis as well. Cutie was seen the first time a the day before our arrival. No greater boon can anyone desire than to drive into this scene. We were four photographers, and the flashes kept firing for nearly 10 minutes while she was just starring down at us. The picture is only slightly cropped on the left. This is NOT the same post as the two on TE. The photograph illustrates clearly how well camouflaged she is, hoe difficult to detect if immovable. Next post, at the killing tree.
gerhardt, RAP, Jeppe, PDP, Lesley, TAZ, extramundi, japie, kb10, Luc has marked this note useful
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Critiques [Translate]

Now this is cutie at her best this is onne beautiful image callie. I love the way she is peeping over the branch, the surrounding colours match her fur, you can see why they have spotsit helps them blend so well.

Lovely moment you captured. They are really hard to find if they choose not to be found. The critter truely is a Cutie, Callie. Well taken. Great note. I dared a WS.

  • Great 
  • RAP Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 2524 W: 345 N: 2373] (7405)
  • [2004-09-17 17:17]

La belleza y dulzura de esa mirada es maravillosa.
Gran composicion... el mimetismo de este felino es excelente.
Coincido con el workshop de Gerhard.

The beauty and mellowness of that glance is wonderful.
Great composition... the mimicry of this feline is excellent.
I agree with workshop of Gerhard.

  • Great 
  • Jeppe Silver Star Critiquer/Silver Note Writer [C: 36 W: 0 N: 33] (193)
  • [2004-09-17 17:51]

Lovely caputure Callie - those eye's can "kill" ;-) Glad to see those shots of yours - now hopefully this not a riscy buissness :-)

  • Great 
  • PDP Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor [C: 2821 W: 344 N: 3779] (11769)
  • [2004-09-17 18:18]

She's gorgeous Callie, nice capture of what looks like a private moment of reflection. Excellent shot.

Callie, OK here I go again - "My wife says" you should get 10 pts just for the cute factor alone!! Love the overall effect of this "Cuties" face framed in branches & the soft lighting. Thanks for the great note & for taking us along on your "safari"! ;-)

Hi Callie. I really like this shot quite a lot. for me, the colors of the photo are just excellent. A really nice whistful look on the young cat. The only thing I think is that it doesn't have quite the sharpness of your newer shots, but I think that is because the scan is not quite as clean as you get from your D70. Also, a very nice job of making your subject work in a very busy environment. It would be so easy to have branches causing bad distractions, but that doesn't really happen here. Good shot.

  • Great 
  • TAZ Gold Star Critiquer/Silver Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 2241 W: 47 N: 3167] (10926)
  • [2004-09-18 0:07]

Magnifique portrait de ce félin ! La composition est extra et comme toujours la note super ! La version WS de Gerhardt est bien...
Very well done !

Enjoying very much this series, not only because of the excelent shots but also for the notes. Thanks.

  • Great 
  • japie Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 1814 W: 100 N: 1904] (5187)
  • [2004-09-18 16:14]

This is beautiful and this series is just fueling my desire to capture some as well. I like the crop in this as it leaves the clutter of the hideout in tact. Thanks for posting Groetnis.

very nice and cute, TSF Ori

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