Hi Rose
You were certainly fortunate to come across this scene and if they are anything like their English cousins, I bet the deer did not hang around for too long. Without seeing the original, it is difficult to comment on the cropping, except to say that using part of a tree to form a frame on the border is usually the best option. Otherwise you end up with a light strip along the edge which takes the eye from the main subject.
I have to say that for me, this is a "nearly" image. I like the colours and the gentle harmony of the greens and browns, and the deer give it an appeal, but their positions in the scene could have been better. It took me a few moments to realise that there are five of them in the image, with the two fawns on the right being particularly obscured. The deer next to them is also blending into the background, which as one of the points of interest is a pity.
Unfortunately, much the same can be said about the principal deer in the foreground. It is in a great position and looking directly at the camera, but if only we could see more of its legs or the sunlight behind it was shining where it is standing. Alternatively, if it had been a bit closer and so larger in the frame, it would have the prominence the image needs.
I have done a quick and inelegant Photoshop mashup to illustrate what I mean. I have enlarged the deer in the foreground, cloned in some legs for it and lightened it slightly to make it more the main point of interest.
- Edited image
- Capture.JPG (201.77 KiB) Viewed 7419 times
This shot is typical of the way our hobby can be so frustrating on occasion. We are gifted a view like this, but it is only fleeting and all the elements do not quite come together to get the best out of it. That said, it remains a pleasing image and possibly a bit of judicious editing of the original would allow everything to come together to give it that bit extra.
