Weekly Photo Challenge: Treasure

One of the things I love about photography is that you never know where or if you will find a treasured image – one that recalls the experience you had, the magic of the moment or the splendor of the subject.  Even in a place like Africa where the opportunities are endless, you never know if you will get that one “keeper”.  Even after you go through your photos a couple of times that treasure may still elude you.  That kind of happened to me as I went through my Africa portfolio – there are MANY that I think are good photos and capture the moment well but I was hoping to get at least one that I could have printed professionally to put in our own living room.  It wasn’t until I started doing a first cut of post- processing on some of the photos that I stumbled upon this one that I really liked.  I had taken a photo of a male lion sitting in the grass of the Serengeti – the light wasn’t great and he wasn’t doing much but he had this very wispy mane that I liked.  I decided to see what it would be like as a simulated oil painting using some of the photoshop tools and came up with the image below.  I love the expression in the lion’s face and the way his mane translates into brush strokes…….  I  have sent this away to be printed and am anxiously awaiting its return – hopefully to become a treasured part of our living room decor.

Serengeti Treasure