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G'day,
More animal stuff, going through some stuff from the Melbourne Zoo, just seemed to catch me and I haven't posted 'em...

Any other Vic. FOTZ members going in for the exhibition thing? Might be a bit of fun, with a wild animal, plant or habitat theme. $25 entry and Zoo gets 25% which seems more than fair and a good cause. Apparently the zoo did well last year so might be good fun and experience, Nicole, Dean?

Just seemed to connect to this guy, he stared me out:


And an awesome pussy-cat...


Here I had to clone out a stem of grass that was sticking up his nose, doh! I must go back and tidy up where I cloned it out...


Cheers,
Mudder

Love the shots Mudder. The mandrill looks a little soft to me, perhaps a teensy bit of sharpening or a slight nudge in the contrast might strengthen it? The snow leopard is great and I wouldn't have picked the cloning if you hadn't mentioned it - in fact I can't pick it even after you've mentioned it!!

Wish I could come along sometime....

Thanks Simon, I use high-pass filters for most sharpening, haven't used USM in these I don't think, maybe I had the opacity of the high-pass layer too low (I think it was about 70% off memory).

I wouldn't sweat it Andrew - this one's a tricky one. You've got the eyes nailed but it's the colour bands on the snout plus the outer fur that lose a little crispness. (Looks like he used conditioner today!)
I'd hate to see those eyes blow out through too much sharpening but maybe some selective work in other areas might work.

Really great shots Andrew, as always. You have an amazing eye for the animal shots. The mandrill is excellent, the big cat is regal.

(BTW - did you see the portarits of the orangutans in the Good Weekend this week?)

I actually like the softness on the mandrill; I think it's a great portrait with great colours and, to me, the softness only helps with the portatit feel.

Andrew - I am in agreement with Gary - the Mandrill shot is beautiful - like the pussies as well

Andrew, Great shots again. You must have a great affinity with the animals. The only ones that dont wander off when I arrive are the lions and the pelicans! . BTW I havent come acroos the mandrill yet. Where is it?

Regards
Meicw

Good shots, Andrew. The mandrill is my pic of the litter.

Your zoo pics now are really great! These are definite cover shots. The mandrill is also my favourite. I missed the cut off for the exhibition. Might have to call and see whether that date was a strict cut off date.

Andrew

Me too for the Mandril. The glint of the eyes and the strong eye contact really draw you to the image and I like it just how it is.

Mudder
These are professional quality images. You got the skill.

Hey - Are the snow leapards in a different area? Seem all different..

I am intersted in the gallery thing, but still don't know what I need to do by when.. ordered a couple of 30x24" prints in preparation..

PlatinumWeaver
You mean getting your own images printed to that size? Do they need to be that large?

Don't need to be - but I thought i'd see what the quality was like.. if they're good quality I'll frame them and try to sell them

If your images are sharp and uncropped then they will survive being enlarge to that size. You will need to step back a little to appreciate the quality. If you stick your nose to the print then you may see a little softness....but don't let that affect your judgement. They will be supurb when viewed from the normal viewing distance.

I feel suitably chastened for my comments regarding the sharpness of the mandrill shot. My monitor's in the bin and I'm off to the optometrist.

G'day all,
Forgot about the thread so sorry for not answering questions...

The pussy cat portrait I blew up to 16X24 size and cropped to 16X20 and others can go up to 20x30 no worries with good printing. I did mine without interpolation, but I assume that would help for that size. My stuff from EdgePrinting looks great, sharp and detailed and at that size, very clear and no noise (although I neat Image'd the blurred backgrounds).

I believe PW is also exhibiting Dean (PW) had a 20x30 that looked great!

The exhibition will be interesting and fun

Cheers.

Andrew. Awesome shots!! Especially like the first snow cat shot, but Im a sucker for kitty-cats...