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Mara Lion Cub
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Mara Lion Cub

by Mario Moreno

Gallery: WildlifePosted April 19, 2014147 views4 comments
One of three Lion cubs we found perched on a boulder along the Leopard Gorge in Masai Mara North Conservancy made famous by BBC's Big Cat Diary documentaries. W spent a good 3 hours with these cute guys and the mother taking care of them. This image has a 15% crop and decided to keep the foliage on the right. I think it adds to the image …… what do you think ?

EOS 1D Mark IV - EF300mm f2.8L IS USM - 1/1000sec @ f5.0 - ISO 500

Comments

4 comments
Comment posted by Gary Gulash on April 19, 2014 at 6:25 PM
I like the subject a lot Mario, cute and a sweet expression to boot. Since you asked, I think I would prefer if the branch really wasn't in the frame, as it is slightly distracting. I think you could also slightly increase the over all exposure as the face and rock could be a bit lighter. Ok, one final nit, maybe a little more dof to show off the nice lichen detail in the rock better. That rock needs exacting exposure and detail I think because it forms a large part of the image. Certainly an excellent photo as is.
Registered on January 28, 2005, 879 Posts, 12098 Comments
Comment posted by Philip Hodgkins on April 19, 2014 at 7:58 PM
Gary caught all three of my nits. I do like the expression on the cub's face, sort of "I'm shy, would you like to play with me?" :smile:
Registered on July 24, 2006, 2741 Posts, 12349 Comments
Comment posted by Richard Sandor on April 20, 2014 at 10:09 AM
I agree with the other posters in that the cub and the rock could be brought up a bit. I however, do like the foliage. There are tons of shots of cats perched on a rock with nothing but sky in the frame. This one with the foliage is unique in the good sense.
Registered on January 12, 2014, 453 Posts, 1625 Comments
Comment posted by Rick Cloran on April 21, 2014 at 3:04 PM
Interesting, I guess I'm off on my own again. For the comp as presented I like it the way you have it. If I were to drop out the foliage, I would make a stronger crop to limit the rock and concentrate on the cub. What you have is good by me though. Very nice detail in the cub. Studying the look you are getting, you either have something it wants or you (or the person next to you) has it thinking about dinner :wink:
Registered on April 6, 2004, 119 Posts, 1989 Comments