Line of lines

Gallery: WildlifePosted August 5, 201166 views5 comments

I was fascinated by the way the zebras in Tanzania stood in groups, each with their chin resting on the back of another. Apparently this helps them watch in all directions for predators. The patterns on zebras are like a test of your focus (as well as the camera's). with stripes upon stripes, it's hard to even tell where the eyes are! (I looked for the earsjavascript:%20x()).

I cropped out some dull sky, since it was near high noon when we came upon a large herd of wildebeest and zebras.

Nikon D300; 70-200mm VRII f/2.8
1/320 @ f/4.5; 175mm; ISO 200

Comments

5 comments

Comment posted by Gary Gulash on August 6, 2011 at 1:47 AM

Interesting composition that really shows how confusing their stripes might appear for a predator. I'm not too sure about the level at which you cropped at the bottom, perhaps a bit more of the legs could be shown? Still a photo I would be proud of!

Registered on January 28, 2005, 879 Posts, 12098 Comments

Comment posted by Ashley Vincent on August 6, 2011 at 1:52 AM

Real nice composition Margaret! I'd hazard a guess and say another reason why Zebras like to rest their chins on the backs of others is that it's probably a good way to help relive some of the tension that surely builds up in their neck muscles most of the time while standing on their own keeping a vigilant eye.

Registered on March 1, 2011, 154 Posts, 2083 Comments

Comment posted by Lennart Augustsson on August 6, 2011 at 4:22 AM

Interesting to see this photo as we plan a safari in Tanzania next January. The stripes of the zebras form a beautiful pattern. It should be interesting to se the picture with the zebra legs. The pattern maybe "disappear" then.

Lennart

Registered on July 29, 2011, 21 Posts, 137 Comments

Comment posted by Vincent Grafhorst on August 7, 2011 at 8:58 AM

The positioning of all these individual make for an interesting image Margaret, you noticed this opportunity well. The pano crop suits this IMO as it focuses the attention on the heads and backs. Inclusion of the legs would have been a distraction to that. A pity the light was so harsh though.

Registered on February 24, 2006, 504 Posts, 7203 Comments

Comment posted by Roger Hayden on August 9, 2011 at 10:49 PM

The chins are interesting in a wildlife documentary way. But, when I first looked, I thought you were presenting this as an interesting symetrical pattern. The zebra looking straight at your camera divides the scene, making each side of the image look like a mirror image of the other. If this is how you want to present, the cropped legs don't matter. I really like this.

Registered on November 21, 2009, 41 Posts, 201 Comments