Bunny in the Backyard... C&C Please

Taken with the 70-200 f/4L...he let me get pretty close...

C&C Please...

Pretty good for back-lighting - does wonders for his ears, but doesn't do much for the rest of him.

Always hard to get a majority of viewers to accept such a bright, featureless background. Very nice, nonetheless.

A+
its a perfect photograph
nothing i could say could improve it

I like the lighted ears. The rabbit appears the way that they are usually seen in the wild -- darkly blending in with their surroundings -- protective coloration has a way of doing that. And at the same time, he has been caught in a perfectly lighted bright silhouette -- not an easy trick.

Thanks for the comments, guys!

Just before this picture, he was really hamming it up...cleaning his paws and face, eating... unfortunately when I moved to grab my camera he got startled... so this was the best shot I could get...

Robert165 wrote in post #5719296
A+
its a perfect photograph
nothing i could say could improve it

--Ditto--

i like how he looks very tense. however, i must say that i'm part of the majority that doesn't really like such bright, featureless backgrounds. also, his back end looks out of focus. i would try to get his whole body in focus.

DrFil wrote in post #5722946
i like how he looks very tense. however, i must say that i'm part of the majority that doesn't really like such bright, featureless backgrounds.

I agree with the background, however, not much I could have done, seeing as the sun was setting behind him.

DrFil wrote in post #5722946
his back end looks out of focus. i would try to get his whole body in focus.

Re: the focus, it's a problem that I don't know how to address... I wanted to make sure his eyes and ears were in focus, and didn't really think his back end would have been OOF a bit. Was shooting at f/4, so I don't think this is a problem caused by a shallow DOF, especially because the foreground has bokeh, but not the ground near him.

However, the ground right near his back end does appear in focus, so maybe he was either moving, or it's just an illusion that's caused by the
texture of his fur...that's all I can come up with...

I love the lighting, and I think you nailed the exposure, but the back end of the bunny is the wrong kind of soft.

f/4 can produce a pretty short DOF depending on the focal length, and I think your subject was at too much of an angle with the back end closer to you than the ears. If you had moved left a little to square up to him then it would have done better.
Looking at the dirt I think there might have been a little more room in the focal plane behind the bunny as well. Next time if he will stay in place long enough then try to get a few shots and focus on different spots. I think if you focused on the middle instead rabbit instead of on the eyes then you might have been able to keep everything in focus.

PMatthes wrote in post #5723215
However, the ground right near his back end does appear in focus, so maybe he was either moving, or it's just an illusion that's caused by the
texture of his fur...that's all I can come up with...

She's a disco rabbit--she was just shaking her booty