BEAR

but don't you feel the background is a bit distracting?

Let me know if you don't find this critique useful and I will be glad to delete it.

(I also added some "catch lights" to his eyes.)

Steve

Appreciate your comments and advice.

Take Care, Pete

Great pose... I can hear you now; a little more to the left, chin down :-)

I agree with Steve's crop suggestion, but find his catch lights a little bright. Good shot, regardless.... Mike

To improve: I have to echo some of the above suggestions about the cropping. The only "flaw" I noticed in the photo is the presence of two gray lines, perpendicular to each other, blurred out in the background. Those suggest a manmade object like a fence. Not being there, I don't know if they are or not. I feel that a "wild and free" look to the bear portrait, cropped, is preferable; unless, you choose to go the other way, and have a shot where it is in focus; if it is a fence, I would need to see more of a man vs. nature clash in the picture.

That said, I applaud your outstanding shot of the bear. Clearly, an excellent photo. The hues and tone of the grasses and vegetation go really well with the detailed rendering of the red-brown fur in the bear. The eyebrows, the muzzle and the ear position, all add to the expression of the bear. This bear is not merely sitting, he (or she) is noticing something.

Excellent use of depth of field to isolate the subject, in foreground and in background. The details rest with the bear. Outstanding.

If I was this close to a bear, even though they mostly eat berries, I would go the other way. Great job. J.

Thanks for your comments and very good suggestions!

Take Care, Pete