# Monkeys and Tigers, OH MY!



## shelby16 (May 15, 2013)

C&C would be LOVELY. I really have been trying to take in everything that you guys have been saying. These photos may or may not have been taken at the zoo with my Nikon D5100 at 55-300m... who knows. 
Thanks,
Shelby

#1 Relaxing in the sun.



#2 I see you.


#3 Eye of the tiger


#4 Peek a boo!


#5 Lion


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## shelby16 (May 15, 2013)

Oh, and I love this one so I had to share!


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## pixmedic (May 15, 2013)

im going to say missed focus on the monkey shots. 
love the tiger shot!
green bird is good.
lion is framed too tight. 
kinda looks like missed focus again on the two white birds. 


personally, the Tiger and green bird are the winners here.


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## shelby16 (May 15, 2013)

pixmedic said:


> im going to say missed focus on the monkey shots.
> love the tiger shot!
> green bird is good.
> lion is framed too tight.
> ...


Thank you so much for posting!  I really appreciate your opinions, and I will take them into consideration next time I shoot.


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## shelby16 (May 15, 2013)

Bump.  I want as many critiques as possible. I really do take it all in.


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## wackii (May 15, 2013)

It would be cool if u can wait till the tiger looks at you.  Cool shot though.  Consider different time of day to shoot these as they all seemed to have shadows.  Thanks for sharing.


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## globeglimpser (May 15, 2013)

As a person who loves shooting big cats (with my D5100) I lve these!

Are you into shootng animals or was this a one off?


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## globeglimpser (May 15, 2013)

1+2) Missed focus as metioned
3) Love the tiger but may have stopped down to get a little more focus on the back - tigers have very prominent stripes and having these stand out adds a lot to a tiger shot imo
4) The bird is well shotbut was it maybe possible to reframe and avoid getting the bowl.
5) For the lion I wuldneitermhave zoomed out to get the full mane or in to get a great portait - trya crop and see what it looks like - maybe even change the orientation
6) I love these, they look like egrets but my birding knowledge is limited to what you find in Africa - can anyone shed some light here? Anyway, great shot this one

The trick to shooting in a zoo is to always try and eliminate any manmade objects as you would if you had to in the wild. Some wildlife photographers don't like it when people do this and would be justified especially when people claim their zoo shots to be wild. The whole point of wildlife photogaphy is tracking and finding your subject and working to get the shot. You ar clearly not one of these people since you clearly mentioned zoo.

Anyway thats me nd my thoughts. Great job, and hope to see more of your shots


Ps - I also have the D5100 and 55-300


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## shelby16 (May 16, 2013)

Thank you so much Globeglimpser!  Yes, I am VERY into shooting animals, they are my main subjects. Birds especially.
Also, love the advice you gave me, I will take it into my next session. 

I don't mind sharing that it was at the zoo, haha! But I know some people that would never tell.

The closest I could get to the tiger "looking at me" was this:


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## Judobreaker (May 16, 2013)

Why bother not admitting a shot wasn't made at a zoo.
For one, you're trying to deceive people (which I think is rather low) and second... If a shot is good it is good.

I've made some of my coolest shots at the zoo.


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## shelby16 (May 16, 2013)

Judobreaker said:


> Why bother not admitting a shot wasn't made at a zoo.
> For one, you're trying to deceive people (which I think is rather low) and second... If a shot is good it is good.
> 
> I've made some of my coolest shots at the zoo.


I totally agree!  I'm always going to share that it was at the zoo. I don't believe it tricking people into thinking it was in the wild. But I TRY to get rid of manmade objects as much as possible.


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## globeglimpser (May 16, 2013)

shelby16 said:


> Judobreaker said:
> 
> 
> > Why bother not admitting a shot wasn't made at a zoo.
> ...



This here is the perfect attitude 

The goal is to get the best photograph possible. The zoo mention is just to avoid images in zoos being compared directly with images from the wild - both are photographically good but some of the work wildlife photographers do should also be credited (searching, tracking, waiting in a hide, following, never getting close enough...)

I'm sorry for hijacking your post to talk about this - I was just really happy to see posts of wild animals where the publisher clearly stated these were zoo shots. This has never been a problem in this forum as far as I know but as a potential wildlife photographer and a person currently studying via distance to be a field guide in Southern Africa, this is something I feel quite strongly about along with rhino poaching


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## globeglimpser (May 16, 2013)

shelby16 said:


> Thank you so much Globeglimpser!  Yes, I am VERY into shooting animals, they are my main subjects. Birds especially.
> Also, love the advice you gave me, I will take it into my next session.
> 
> I don't mind sharing that it was at the zoo, haha! But I know some people that would never tell.
> ...




I love this, so dreamy 


So wildlife photography, birds and? I'm sorry for all this curiosity - you are the first person I have met on this forum who is interested in wildlife and big cats...


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## shelby16 (May 16, 2013)

That's totally fine Globeglimpser! Hijack away. haha
Yes, I LOVE wildlife photography and birds. I'm trying my hand at more portraits with natural light, like starting with my family. I have a friend who wants me to take photos of her baby girl for Fathers Day!
Living in Florida there are LOTS of wildbirds and pelicans that like to be photographed, so sometimes I'll see the weirdest things show in my backyard. Like this one: 

Not my best work, but what the crap is that?!?! haha.


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## globeglimpser (May 16, 2013)

This looks like it was a tad too far away for the 55-300. I have the same lens and the exact same camera and I know that while it is great, you can never have enough focal length, especially on a student budget 


PS. I Pm'ed you


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## David8 (May 16, 2013)

globeglimpser said:


> I love this, so dreamy
> 
> 
> So wildlife photography, birds and? I'm sorry for all this curiosity - you are the first person I have met on this forum who is interested in wildlife and big cats...



Big Cats? Wildlife? I LOVE big cats and wildlife. Mainly big cats though.  I just wish I could see them in their natural environment, rather then zoos...


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## globeglimpser (May 16, 2013)

David8 said:


> globeglimpser said:
> 
> 
> > I love this, so dreamy
> ...



Well you should visit South Africa and u can see 6 different big cats!


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## David8 (May 16, 2013)

globeglimpser said:


> Well you should visit South Africa and u can see 6 different big cats!



I would love to. Except the tiger is my favourite... Lions, cheetahs and leopards are pretty close behind though. =)


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## shelby16 (May 16, 2013)

I totally agree! I want to see natural wildcats, but sadly can't do that anytime soon.


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## globeglimpser (May 16, 2013)

David8 said:


> globeglimpser said:
> 
> 
> > Well you should visit South Africa and u can see 6 different big cats!
> ...



Seeing a tiger would be awesome!

My ultimate cat photography goals:

- Caracal mid-air catching a bird
- A wild king cheetah
- A wild amur leaopard
- A wild white lion
- A wild snarling tiger

=]


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## Aloicious (May 16, 2013)

globeglimpser said:


> you are the first person I have met on this forum who is interested in wildlife and big cats...



Hi, nice to meet you...heh, seriously though, I dont know anyone who is into wildlife photography (even those that aren't) who wouldn't jump at the chance to photograph some big cats. its just not very accessible to a lot of us, for example, my local zoo has the cat house (heh  ) surrounded by glass, which is outdoors, so it's rarely spotless, so shooting through it doesn't produce very good images...and going to Africa isn't very feasible for many people. I do plan on going there sometime though, thats one place I NEED to shoot at before I die...Oz and NZ too..

OP- great shots, #3 is my favorite as well.


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## globeglimpser (May 17, 2013)

I am very fortunate to have the best of both worlds

I am currently studying in Sydney but my family live back in South Africa so I travel a lot between the two


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## Aloicious (May 17, 2013)

globeglimpser said:


> I am very fortunate to have the best of both worlds
> 
> I am currently studying in Sydney but my family live back in South Africa so I travel a lot between the two



Indeed you are! I really enjoy seeing shots from around the globe, especially of wildlife, what's common to one person, might be exotic and rare to another....


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## shelby16 (May 19, 2013)

Aloicious said:


> globeglimpser said:
> 
> 
> > you are the first person I have met on this forum who is interested in wildlife and big cats...
> ...



Believe it or not, the zoo I went to had AWFUL glass, with lots of spots, and I was able to get photos without it showing. aka my tiger shots.


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