Field Photos-The Key To Getting Published

[D.Turvey Jr]

Musket Man,

1st Image: Wipe the blood off the mouth and don't prop his head up on the rifle. Consider rotating his body so his head is to your left (uphill) and let that bush obscure from the mid ribs back to his hind quarters. Another mistake a lot of guys make is wrapping their entire hand or hands around the main beams. This can give the viewer a frame of reference and make the deer look smaller. I would also tip his chin slightly down and quarter turn him to your right. Instead of taking a knee, consider sitting cross leg or on your rear end behind his shoulder making sure your left knee is hidden as much as possible behind the deer. Also be mindful of that brush creeping up over the right side of the bucks face.

2nd Image: Pretty much the same things apply here as in the first but I like what you're doing with getting the second angle of his rack. You might have considered turning it more to your left to bring out that back fork more.

 

[D.Turvey Jr]

One thing to understand as well gentlemen, is these are "blue sky" suggestions. Obviously if you have a 600-pound bull facing steeply down hill or locked up in a tree or something, there may not be much you can do with the images/animal in that situation. So take that into consideration when reading the posts. You'll know when you have the time and place to work with the images/animal and when you don't.

 

[CrossCreeks]

Great critique's , keep them coming and the pictures ! I think we all will learn something !

 

[ScottR]

Let's Create some office controversy, Dan critique my pictures please:

 

[Elkoholic307]

Who wants to guess which one was taken with a cell phone?

 

[D.Turvey Jr]

Let's Create some office controversy, Dan critique my pictures please:

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Oh man, here we go! Hold on while I lock my office door first

In the first image the grass in the foreground is a little concerning but not terrible. You and your animal are off center in the frame and you might have considered sitting on your rear end to get your knees down. I might suggest propping her head up more as well. I would also suggest taking the pictures angling from the front instead of the rear. You'll also notice you're on the edge of your flash range and the angle up towards the sky washes out the top half of the image. Note: never take pictures where the camera is facing a bright source of light such as sun, sky, etc. This is particularly important with the antler tines are in the bright space as we nearly lose them. Alway have the light to the rear of the camera or at an angle over a shoulder. Be mindful of deep shadows cutting across your trophy to.

In the second image you have a good background and decently composed shot but the focus appears to be off. You tried to minimize your hands on the rack which is good but might I suggest grabbing him with one hand at the base of his skull or using two fingers on the antler bases just above the ears. Also, this straight on angle doesn't do your buck justice. As a viewer, we can't really get a solid feel for what the rack has going on. The backpack seems to be a major component of the image as well, maybe even so overwhelming it could be considered the focus of the image. Try to minimize the importance of your gear.

In the thumbnail you've cut off most of the deers body and are centered in the lower right quadrant. This image would not be published because there's not much we can work with and the composition is off. We could possibly use an image like this as a Successful Trophy Hunter at best.

That brings up a good point to. Don't frame your trophy to tightly to the edge of the image frame as it handcuffs us in the design phase but on the same token, don't leave copious amounts of "air" either. There's a solid middle ground you'll have to develop a feel for.

 

[D.Turvey Jr]

Who wants to guess which one was taken with a cell phone?

You've got some good and bad going on here.

In the first image the animal is posed well with legs tucked up and under, the goat's chin is level to slightly down and angled to your right slightly so we can get a good feel for his cutters and hooks. The rifle in front is not bad, though I would like to see this pose without the rifle as well for a feature story. You're holding the back of his head and not the horns, very nice. Good, clear foreground. My only suggestions would be to move slightly to your right and sit on your rear end, though that's not a deal breaker. Clean the blood off around his mouth and tip your hat up slightly to lighten your face. Obviously you had flat, overcast light which isn't a bad thing but consider taking a few pictures with the flash as well.

In the second image you and the animal are positioned well and you're holding the back of his head but I am assuming your fingers were right behind his ears pushing them out, try to grasp a lower vertebrae to alleviate this problem. This is a good example of having the wrong sun angle to. Try to rotate the animal so the sun is at the cameras back, otherwise as you can see, deep shadows came across you and your trophy. Try to clean his mouth up a little more.

The third image is actually pretty solid. I would tip his hat up slightly to lighten his face. I would also turn the animals head to his right slightly and tuck in the tongue. Consider positioning the hunter behind the bucks shoulder for a few shots as well. The image is cropped tight to the top of his hat and the animals leg which doesn't give us much to work with. Other than that it's a solid, clean photo.

 

[Timberstalker]

One thing to understand as well gentlemen, is these are "blue sky" suggestions. Obviously if you have a 600-pound bull facing steeply down hill or locked up in a tree or something, there may not be much you can do with the images/animal in that situation. So take that into consideration when reading the posts. You'll know when you have the time and place to work with the images/animal and when you don't.

Copy that! The ram picture I posted the ground is WAY steeper than it looks. There was no way I was going to try to move it away from the two trees that were keeping it from rolling down the hill.
That finger ridge across the cayon above my head is where I killed him.

 

[D.Turvey Jr]

Ah c'mon, a sheep hunter eats country like that for breakfast. What's moving a 300-pound ram uphill compared to that

 

[AKaviator]

AK,

For support photos those would work reasonably well. Way to make a guy with a desk job jealous Love that country up there.

Thanks; I like the 3rd photo because it was taken a second after my son sat up from watching his bull drop. His smile is real.
We didn't get the ram that we were after...a 44" beast. The caribou was consolation on the final day.

This is a really good thread; I've always been an avid picture taker...I'm trying to become a photographer. Critiques help a lot!

 

[ScottR]

I will post pics up of what I would actually use, my partner and I got some really good shots. Before I worked here I was thinking for freelance internet stories, and you have more wiggle room with those types of pictures.

 

[Musket Man]

As he lay and when I spotted him. I know the live pic isnt very clear. I took it through my spotter.

 

[RUTTIN]

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Here is a buck I killed on the extended archery,any and all critique would be great, thanks!

 

[ScottR]

Lighting is good, snow aids with that a lot. You also did a good job with the angles of the antlers, best fork looks good.

When posing the deer get the legs underneath, they are sticking out awkwardly. Position the bow further from center and not so off kilter.

From a photography end of things, get lower as a photographer or with the tripod. Looking down will help avoid the squinting.

 

[JasonGNV]

Scott and Dan, this is a great thread, thanks.
Keep the pics rolling guys!

 

[packmule]

 

[tttoadman]

Beat me up. I even had a guy to take the photos. I was trying to get out from behind hi, but these brutes are heavy.

 

[ScottR]

Beat me up. I even had a guy to take the photos. I was trying to get out from behind hi, but these brutes are heavy.

Overall, decent pictures, and as a photographer I think you did well with the lighting.

Now, work on the posing a bit. Notice your hand placement, it takes away from the mass on that buck, and that is one of its strengths you want to show off. Always look for the best features and how you can use them to provide the best memories.

Think about it like this, when you tell the story of the buck there will certain traits you talk about. Will your friends agree when they see the pictures, or will you say that the pictures don't do it justice?

 

[ScottR]

This is a better picture of my buck from last year. The buck won't score well but you can see he is wide. We emphasized this trait by making the buck's antlers front and center in the picture and the point of focus. My buddy Dalton took the pictures, he is a good photographer.

Another trick is not get too far back. People can tell when you are long arming a small buck. Sometimes well placed body position does more than sitting way back!

 

[ScottR]

Also don't be afraid to be creative. This was my widest deer and to date and I wanted to spend some time just looking at him. Dalton took the time to keep snapping pictures while looked him over. Shots like this help tell the story.