Red Deer Prince

This younger red deer has a slimmer build than the largest stags, but still has an outstanding rack of antlers. He might be in charge in a few years, but for the time being, he struts his stuff on the fringes without directly opposing the more established "kings" of the herd. He was a bold character who proceeded to walk right by me. As always, I was able to capture this apparently close-up portrait from a safe distance, with a long lens. As he turned his head slightly to get a good look, he adopted the perfect posture for a portrait, while offering a great angle on those antlers. What I enjoy most about this photo is the eye contact and the openness of the posture, as if he's purposefully posing. I kept a little tone to the backdrop to soften the contrast and keep the image from looking too stark.