Dog of war

It almost does look like a pit bull. very muscular !!! I love the low angle and wonder how a horizontal image would work here.

I guess there could be more light on the face but hellhounds aren't supposed to be shot in flattering light right? Somehow the tooth, tongue and snout don't look quite sharp to me but that may be more a trick of the lighting. The DOF looks right otherwise and at the at shutter speed it isn't likely motion blur. Not a big deal. Love the drool.

And is that the river Styx in the foreground? Really dramatic shot of a tough customer.

Clinton

Somehow the tooth, tongue and snout don't look quite sharp to me but that may be more a trick of the lighting.

Clinton, I agree the smaller version might appear that way, but did you check the larger version?

I love his confident pose and the droplets on his whiskers. I would wish for the slightest headturn for more light on the eye. The sense of power in his musculature fills me with questions about the shooting circumstances. We seldom see images of hyena. Would one be in grave danger if you were afoot and in close proximity? Are they seldom or frequently encountered? Oh yes, you also have my admiration for so perfectly framing him in full frame, something that is often difficult to achieve in field conditions.

Hey Lon, for the record I was in my vehicle with a 1000mm focal length to get close to this guy or girl (very hard to tell with females having male like genitals - females being larger and dominant I suspect this was a female)! But seriously, although not entirely harmless to say the least (especially when they are with many - I remember one instance in Moremi where we had to keep them away in the darkness by throwing stones at them as they came dashing from the bushes all around!) they are no serious danger for an adult human under ordinary circumstances. They regularly enter campsites whilst you are still sitting around the fire and run off with your garbage bag or (worse) your cooler box... Maybe as a result spotted hyena's are often taken for cowardless scavengers, but they are in fact formidable hunters that hunt most of their food themselves, especially in arid areas like the Kalahari. Not without a reason they are the no.1 competiton to lions and are main adversaries.

The lighting enhances your portrayal of a formidable-looking beast. Your insistance on the fast shutter certainly enhanced this image.

indeed she looks very powerful and under this perspective she looks a different from the stereotype of an Hyena (shorter hind legs to give more power to the already strong neck when eating) as somebody already said it looks more pitt bull than an Hyena (or a Rhodesian Lion Dog). I like this shot as is, even if on my screen the dark areas are too dark.
cheers Luca

HI Vincent,

While this isn't likely to be a wall-hanger for most folks, I really like this shot. I think you handled the lighting well and that side-lighting brought our really nice definition and detail. The little strand of drool adds visual interest for me. And very well done considering the length of lens (i.e., good technique to get this much sharpness out of that much lens!). My only tiny nit relates to something you couldn't control - it would be nice if there was a tad more natural light striking the eye - if that darned dog had turned its head only a few degrees you would have had that extra bit of illumination (and, very likely, a catch-light to add even more life to this image). Good one!

Cheers...

Brad

Great title, perfect for this tough character.