Anvil Loc: Loveland, CO

A couple of weeks back, we went up to Rocky Mountain National Park, to see if we could find any bull elk duking it out, in hopes of winning a harem. We did not see any fighting, but we did see quite a few winners, along with their harems. Few bulls were close enough for interesting shots. One that was close enough saw fit to stay in fairly dense cover, with really difficult light.

So, we headed back home. The route takes us through Estes Park, where we came upon this big boy, resting right in front of the library. When we first saw him, his head was leaning quite a bit to one side, as if he were dozing off. He seemed quite content to lay down, and let the crowd look. (It was a weekday, so the crowd wasn't all that big.) There was an Estes Park police officer making sure the folks did not get too close, but we were still pretty close.

The photo I took was intended to be a sort of portrait of a wild animal. For this result, I often choose black and white, as was the case with this shot. Black and white seems to give me more freedom to showcase what I want, and the end result usually looks more stately than a color version. My goal, for these wildlife portraits, is to create something that has more of a studio feel than a simple, candid photo of a wild animal.

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Linda From Maine Loc: Yakima, Washington

It's all about the headgear! The tight framing and b&w do make this very portrait-like and stately, showing great respect for your subject. Love your result, Jim.

Anvil Loc: Loveland, CO

You’re right — a well-dressed man needs a hat. Thanks!

MattPhox Loc: Rhode Island

You achieved your goal rather well! Nice shot!

Anvil Loc: Loveland, CO

Thanks, much!

ebrunner Loc: New Jersey Shore

I love that you filled the frame with your subject. By including all of the rack yet leaving it tight to the frame in the upper left gives us perspective on exactly how impressive those antlers are. We know that a bull elk is a large animal; but by keeping his head and body in the lower third of the frame we are immediately impressed by the size of that headgear. Black and white was definitely the way to go. A very effective composition.
Erich

NJFrank Loc: New Jersey

You do not see this kind of image many times. To capture him resting and not on all fours makes it a really unusual shot. The nice tight crop adds to the overall view. Nice going.

Anvil Loc: Loveland, CO

Thanks! Filling the frame with his head and rack was my goal, for this particular shot, especially since his legs were partially hidden by a tree. That tree helped out the shot in another way, as well. It put the elk in some nice, even light.

Anvil Loc: Loveland, CO

Thanks! I'll be honest with you, views like this shot are not as hard to come by as you might think, if you are in elk country. During the rut, a bull can lose up to a third of its body weight, fighting for a harem. They do need their rest.

olemikey Loc: 6 mile creek, Spacecoast Florida

Very nicely done!!!

Anvil Loc: Loveland, CO

Thanks, much!

Curmudgeon Loc: SE Arizona

Nicely captured and cropped, to say more would just be repeating what's already been said.

Anvil Loc: Loveland, CO

Thank you!