It can be a challenge to photograph in the late morning on a sunny day. The light gets hot and harsh. However on this morning, the sunny foreground was complimented by some dramatic cloud action in the distance and the perpendicular lighting, although contrasty, made for some drama in lighting. At 10:30 am, this bull moose was still wading and feeding in a tundra pond. If you are familiar with this region, you will know that Mt. McKinley is to the right, but it was clouded over. And, even if it was visible (a bull moose and Mt. McKinley is a sought after shot) it would not have been as interesting from a light perspective. I’ve always been fond of the contextual shots of wildlife in a broad landscape setting, and I particularly like the dramatic light and clouds in this frame.
I photographed a lot of bull moose during my trip in Denali last week. It is a subject I have extensive coverage of, but not much imagery of large bull moose still in velvet antlers, so I was pleased to acquire some pictures of that stage of development. Soon, the bulls will be losing the velvet and preparing for the mating season. I’ll be back in Denali National Park for that later in the month and look forward to the splendid fall colors that will carpet that wonderful landscape.
Bull moose in tundra pond with the Muldrow glacier and Alaska Range mountains in the distance. Canon 1Ds Mark III, 100-400mm (170mm) f/5.6L IS, 1/200 sec @ f/8, ISO 100
Bang bang mmmm yummy
very wonderful perspective…takes a true veteran photographer of this particular park to know how to frame this and where to be at what time! Well done Patrick, as always!!
Thanks Sue.
Whoa! It must be stupendous live!
Thanks for sharing.
Stacey,
For one who enjoys being outdoors, nature photography is a fine suit to wear. However, there is a lot going on behind the scenes of any given image that may not always be stupendous 🙂 However, I have no complaints of my job, save that there is simply too much light in Alaska’s summers to provide for sufficient sleep.
Well composed and I see you made the best of the weather conditions. Well done, I expect to see this one on some postcards!
Thanks Mike, I guess we work with the weather we get. I like the cloud action, it adds so much to a photo.
Patrick,
Great shot, Was that from just one image or a composite? If just one shot that is some fine glass you are using 🙂
Chuck,
That image is just one shot, exposed to the right for maximum shadow detail. It’s pretty amazing what kind of dynamic range can be extracted from one single exposure. I do fewer and fewer blends these days for that reason, and much less work with split graduated ND’s than I used to. It’s a movement towards simplicity, although image blends and the physical grads have their place.