I thought I’d celebrate with a before and after. To say so-long to summer, my daughter and I took in an early morning stroll at the Philadelphia Zoo yesterday. The zoo is one of those love/hate places for me. I love experiencing and learning about animals I would never get to see otherwise, but I hate how some just look like they would be so much happier…free. I also love photographing the animals but hate the unnatural environment.
Many of the animals were a bit more active (relatively speaking given their surroundings) than in past visits, the cool temperatures for some and the warm sun for others, I suppose. My daughter and I had an agenda this trip, the debut of the snow leopard cubs, but we also got a few surprises… some very testy flamingos, the posing lions (they’ve never been awake for us before), the kissing giraffes, and then when I turned around these three…
A shot you just can’t plan for. Remember what I said about the unnatural background…case in point, not to mention all those highlights, their faces in shadow. But this was so much more about what I did have... three gazelles perfectly poised. That’s all I needed.
First task, getting rid of that hideous background… of course. Topaz Remask to the rescue. 
Next, letting my imagination run wild (no pun intended 😉 )…a sky, a desert maybe… off to my texture library. For the background I wanted something warm & sunny, kind of like the day it was, but also with a little intrigue… something obviously has their attention.
I chose one of my all-time faves, and so appropriately called Between Seasons by Distressed Textures http://distressedtextures.com/.
Then a little cloning of some grass, some blending and playing with the opacity… but just not quite done. When I saw the textured result, I imagined Noah’s Ark. I really have no idea why, as my pair of gazelles brought a guest, but that’s just how my mind works, and that led to the final touch…
I hope you enjoyed this before & after.
Til next time,
Maria
