Cat and Mouse Game

[Gabriela Plesea]

• GABRIELA PLESEA
• GABRIELA PLESEA
• Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 6.10 (Macintosh)

• GABRIELA PLESEA
• GABRIELA PLESEA
• Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 6.10 (Macintosh)

• GABRIELA PLESEA
• GABRIELA PLESEA
• Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 6.10 (Macintosh)

• GABRIELA PLESEA
• GABRIELA PLESEA
• Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 6.10 (Macintosh)

• GABRIELA PLESEA
• GABRIELA PLESEA
• Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 6.10 (Macintosh)

Dear Friends,

Browsing through my folders I found a series of images taken some time ago and thought I'd make up a little sequence to share.

For your information, the Caracal is a powerfully built feline whose hunting skills are hard to match. As you can see from those images, its muscular hind limbs allow for explosive bursts of speed and spectacular vertical leaps. Especially when a mouse is involved! Keep in mind, the rodent is just a morsel, my little predator is able to bring down mammals up to four times its weight!

Adult Caracals are rather solitary and like most cats they display behaviours indicative of territorial defence such as scent marking and scraping. Their enemies are mainly Lions and Leopards. Blackjacked Jackals are known to prey on their young in the Kalahari.

Those images were taken in very harsh light. Given the speed of this cat it wasn't an easy job for me to maintain focus...Nevertheless I do hope you enjoy viewing

Kind regards,

 

[Alex Becker]

Wow Gabriela, what an absolute pleasure to look at these shots -- I can only imagine what it would be like to have witnessed it in person! The range of positions this cat got into is amazing. Good job locking focus throughout these -- must have been quite the challenge. I keep coming back to #2 with them almost locking eye contact with two very different 'facial expressions' if you will. Thank you for sharing

 

[Gabriela Plesea]

Thank you so much Alex:bg3: Action shots are so much fun - this involved lots of running around and trying to get the best POV and I ended up with as much as six hundred images, so lots to choose from. Some are sharper than others, LOL.

Glad you enjoyed this, I sincerely hope you keep this Forum in mind and try contribute from time to time. I have been absent from BPN for some months due to personal reasons but I am back now and participating in various Forums. Most of my evenings are dedicated to PP work Sequences do require a bit more time, but it's fun choosing the right frames and organising them into a logical order to create a story.

Chat again soon, hope you have a wonderful evening Alex,

Kind regards,

 

[Allen Sparks]

Hi Gabriela,
Terrific series here - the different poses you caught of this cat are just amazing. And the airborne mouse puts this sequence well over the top for me. Fascinating behavior - very well caught!
Allen

 

[Gabriela Plesea]

I cannot thank you enough Allen, for viewing and kind comments. Really appreciated:5

Warmest regards,

 

[keith mitchell]

Gabriela agree with the above comments you have captured some excellent shots with all that action and different poses,they are all great but no 3 is my favorite,not so sure about the poor mouse:w3

Keith.

 

[Mike Hitchen]

I know the caracal can be very arcobatic and you have captured that superbly. Having the mouse clearly visible in #2, 4 and 5 adds enormously to the composition and the close-up of the last is something else.

 

[Gabriela Plesea]

Hello Keith and Mike

Was hoping to bring a smile on your face with this sequence, not so easy though as we all fell in love with the poppy climbing mouse in the Wildlife Forum! Myself included...

Thank you so much for viewing and for wonderful comments, I will look through my folders and see what else I can share with you over the next few days:w3

Warmest regards,

 

[Joseph Przybyla]

Hi Gabriela, love your series. As a cat person (two at home) I know these positions well when they play or we play with them. No matter how large or small they are still cats. Our Maine **** cat has the tufts on the ears as this Caracal. You images are wonderful displaying the cat at it's best. Thank you for sharing.

 

[Gabriela Plesea]

Thank you so much Joseph,

I used to have cats too, some years back. They were so much fun and I loved their independent nature and playfulness

So glad you enjoyed those images, and I really appreciate you spending the time to view and comment. Makes me want to share more, I'll be back soon:w3

Warmest regards,

 

[Stuart Philpott]

Dearest Gabriela,:wave:

Mate i've come here so many times,I write struggle to convey and come back to try again,it;s a deeply engaging set Gabby words fail really to covey the joy and beauty I behold in these images . This is the same caracal we spoke of recently is it not? Gabby the set also made me look at myself,nature is hard at times,I am as soft as they come but also part of the circle of life. I'm not a person that doesn't understand how raw nature can be,or is desparately sentimental about that . Predators herbivores onlookers we are all part of this.That said these images in some way make me question my humanity,that I can get joy when the rat is nearing it's end on this mortal coil,which I find deeply interesting.

Amazing photography beautiful processing(ha ha they also made me ponder how we manipulate light in post), I really haven't the words to express the joy you have shared with me,as I have stared long and hard at this most stunning of cats over and over but one word keeps surfacing........

spectacular!!
Take care hope your having a lovely weekend

stu

 

[Gabriela Plesea]

Thank you dear Stu,

I truly appreciate your kind words!

This is indeed the same cat whose antics I could help but share from time to time, sadly no longer with us.

Regarding comments in this Forum, just remember they do not have to be technical in nature. It's all about the sequence as such and whether it works or not. If you wish to share some of your own images drop me a PM or a mail and I will share a few tips with you

Glad to hear from you, and so happy you are enjoying those images. They are meant to bring a smile on your face:S3:

Warmest regards,

 

[Stuart Philpott]

Thank you dear Stu,

I truly appreciate your kind words!

This is indeed the same cat whose antics I could help but share from time to time, sadly no longer with us.

Regarding comments in this Forum, just remember they do not have to be technical in nature. It's all about the sequence as such and whether it works or not. If you wish to share some of your own images drop me a PM or a mail and I will share a few tips with you

Glad to hear from you, and so happy you are enjoying those images. They are meant to bring a smile on your face:S3:

Warmest regards,

They did make me simile and much more Gabby,a breathtaking set of images!! Yes I thought it was her,I feel now she had a good life Gabby too short sure,but she lived it and with all my heart thank you for sharing her with us all


Yes I am hoping to share a story or two, my time is little at the moment ,so I wanted to try and get some replies in and muse a bit first. Read the stories look and learn But yes I'm heading your way,you might have to put up with someone with big ears though ,my life seems to be full of folks with big ears of late,what can I say:bg3:

Thanks for the kind offer,bare with me though,so pushed,as I expect you are ,but I'm pretty determined ,We'll speak soon:w3 I do have a couple of things I'd like to ask you about

best always

Stu