Re-establishing focus on subject matter

[Judland]

Went to the zoo today and took a few (58) pictures. There were about half a dozen that came out really well, that I was very pleased with.

One photo that I liked was of this big horned sheep... with quite the attitude. However, when I took its' picture, I goofed on the camera settings. It focused on the fencing rather than the sheep.

I thought I'd try a technique with G.I.M.P. to try and blur out the fencing and background to help return the focus on to the sheep, where it should be. Do you think my approach worked? Do you think there's a better way of going about this?

The attached photos are only a small portion of the entire picture, but they should be enough to show you what I'm talking about here.

Before


After

[mikehulsebus]

Sometimes part of being a good photographer is being able to part with the near-miss shots. I've had to get some ones with real good action especially when i was shooting U-M Gymnastics--sometimes theres something that messes up a shot in your head and you've just got to realize what you've got is what you've got. Not to say, though, that some shots can't be saved. I think what you did to the fence makes the photo better, however still the focus is a bit soft and the fence a bit distracting. So i mean you don't have an award winning shot or anything, but at least you'll got a decent shot of the big horned sheep with attitude.

[Judland]

Yeah, it was a bit of a bummer when I got home and saw what had happened. But, what can you do, right?

Luckily, if I really want to try again, the zoo is just a short drive away.

Sometimes those little LCD screens on the cameras don't show you everything, do they.

Still, I printed out the picture as a 4"X 6" and it looks good enough for the family photo album and a reminder of the day's activities. But, as you said, it's no award winner.