Wild dog on the run

Gallery: WildlifePosted March 16, 2013131 views5 comments

The most surprising sighting of our Kalahari trip in Februari was when we came upon a pack of wild dogs. 14 individuals to be precise.

We stayed with them all afternoon and after a long wait they finally got up from their resting in the shade. It was interesting to see them start their hunt. Setting out from a group of trees they went single file with a tracker in the front, following the shadows of the trees to stay out of sight. When they closed in on the next group of trees they fanned out "surrounding" the trees to then converge again on the other side when their was no prey to be found.

I tried my luck with panning at a stage when they picked up speed. Was false alarm though, so they slowed down again after a while.

Is the subject sharp enough? Is the rest blurred enough?
Any other comments or critiques are greatly appreciated.

Central Kalahari, Botswana
Canon EOS-1D Mark IV
100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS USM
Shutter Speed: 1/40 Sec.
Aperture: f/8
ISO: 125
Metering Mode: Evaluative Metering
Exposure Compensation: 0

Comments

5 comments

Comment posted by Gary Gulash on March 16, 2013 at 2:30 PM

Hi Johan. I can clearly identify that this is a wild dog and he is quite sharp, while the background is nicely blurred as it should be in a panned situation like this. You were fortunate to catch the dog as sharp as you did since your shutter speed was just 1/40. Selecting a higher iso when anticipating moving animals might have helped in this situation. I like the over all composition including the placement of the subject in the frame. Having said that, I might prefer a slightly lower viewing angle to give more intimacy to the photo. I know this isn't always possible, especially on safari when you are confined to the vehicle. I think this photo works very well as is, any suggested changes are just that, suggestions.

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

Comment posted by Morkel Erasmus on March 16, 2013 at 5:50 PM

Firstly - what a sighting! I heard of dogs going as far as Kaa in the Kgalagadi but I've never seen them in my beloved Kalahari before. I like the idea and it does work somewhat for me, John, but I do wish the forequarters of the dog were as sharp as the hindquarters. Gary made a good point about the angle, not always possible I know...

Registered on March 22, 2011, 385 Posts, 2068 Comments

Comment posted by Vincent Grafhorst on March 17, 2013 at 5:44 AM

This was certainly a very surprising and memorable sighting Johan. This image clearly implies movement, which is a main objective of a panning blur, so in that sense it is successful. I do wish for a bit more blur in the environment and more sharpness on the subject and detail in the facial region. But that is all very wishful thinking and I know that this was a very difficult shooting situation. I am a bit surprised to see other comments about a lower angle; although generally I am a big fan of low angles (you know that) I don't think it is a valid argument for improvement here. The darker subject stands out much better against the lighter ground than it would against the darker dune. Plus the subject was so far away that a lower position would not have made a significant visual difference in this case.

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

Comment posted by Wayne Willison on March 17, 2013 at 5:39 PM

Johan, I've never seen a wild dog in person, but it must be thrilling to witness a pack of them on a hunt. Anyway, I like this for the obvious reason; that you've created a real sense of speed and urgency. Nice work.

Wayne

Registered on April 10, 2009, 292 Posts, 3967 Comments

Comment posted by Johan Malmros on March 18, 2013 at 4:20 PM

Thanks for your comments.
Whether a lower pov would have improved the image or not, there was unfortunately no possibility to choose. We were constrained to the car (and luckily for us they kept moving parallel to the road for quite a while so that we could tag along).
@Gary: I choose the low iso to get a blurred background (I had already been playing it safe with some shots on higher shutter speed)
@Morkel: I can definately see your point about the leg sharpness. It is a bit unbalanced with the difference between front and back as it is.
@Vincent: You are probably right. A bit more blurr and a bit more sharpness ...
@Wayne: This was the first time for me and it was really thrilling. The feeling of speed was the obvious goal so thanks.

Registered on January 6, 2011, 20 Posts, 154 Comments