Sherry Icardi
January 2020 - Giraffe on the Masai Mara
About the Image(s)
So this is one of those quasi- landscapes since the main attraction is the giraffe, but it also shows you one of the most astonishing things about Kenya, the absolutely beautiful skies and the texture of the savannah. The giraffe also happens to be sticking his tongue out at me. But in reality I was really stunned by the beauty of the mountains and vistas throughout our trip. This was taken in the Mara which was very dry but in Samburu and Nakura the grass was rich and green. The animals were also more hungry because all the target animals had already migrated. Lots of babies though throughout!
Details: taken with Nikon D500 and 80-400 mm lens.
1/400sec F/9.0 ISO 140 at 400 mm.
Post processing was WB and cropping
This round’s discussion is now closed!
9 comments posted
A great image of a small part of the African landscape, as one would expect. Grassland, sky and wildlife. You have presented this one as almost a square image which is a departure from the norm, but at the same time is very acceptable. I love the colors and tones, all seem very accurate and true. I am captivated and keep going back to the design of the giraffe's spots. They are not smooth edged shapes as I always thought, but have definite lines and designs to them. A simply superb image Sherry, but I have just one question please. What is that little flapping thing/bit (that's a new photographic term) under his jaw, close to his neck? And I sincerely hope that after you took this shot you turned away, then turned back to him and stuck your tongue back out at him. Posted: 01/13/2020 02:32:26
In the magnified view of this image I can see that the little flapping thing is a bird. They hunt for ticks I think. Posted: 01/15/2020 05:41:39
Jamos is correct, it is an Oxpecker and in fact there is a second one. I have one image of zebras that have lots on them. and they help keep bugs to a minimum! Posted: 01/15/2020 17:04:52
Nice photo indeed. In my view it is somewhat closer to a wildlife photo than a landscape, but this does not diminish its value. If you post-process your images in Lightroom, there is a slider called "dehaze" and even a touch of dehaze makes the sky nice.
Maybe he is simply cooling his tongue after a hot spiky dinner. Posted: 01/15/2020 05:45:46
Maybe he is simply cooling his tongue after a hot spiky dinner. Posted: 01/15/2020 05:45:46
It is a wildlife photo as well as a landscape. I found the beauty of the Kenyan sky a fantastic backdrop for the giraffe and wanted to show off both the giraffe and the Kenyan countryside. It was surely an indulgence on my part, and I'll keep them to a minimum, I promise! Posted: 01/19/2020 15:58:34
I like the shot, and great timing on the tongue - wish there4 was more room at the feet. Posted: 01/27/2020 22:53:58
I cropped this one so I had plenty of room to add some additional to the bottom. I usually get dinged for not cropping enough and I actually prefer to leave some room to shoe the environment. And since this would really be about the landscape, you are totally correct. I also added some dehire to the sky to darken it a little, per Janos' comment. Posted: 01/28/2020 11:46:54
I think it is a very nice shot, crop on left fine and sky looks good Posted: 01/28/2020 14:25:32
Beautiful and lovely capture. The composition is very nice also. The cropped version looks very good too. Posted: 01/29/2020 13:42:36