This image was a bit of a mistake. I was photographing critically endangered black-crested macaques on the island of Sulawesi in Indonesia. When I saw this macaque sitting in the middle of a charred field — the result of an illegal slash and burn fire — he seemed as if he was crying out at the short-sighted practice of his fellow primates. I quickly grabbed my second camera with wide angle lens attached and took the shot without realizing that I had left a filter holder screwed in, causing extreme vignetting at 17mm. But the result seemed to work, as if the macaque was at the wrong end of a gun, with little hope for survival if local villagers continue to encroach upon his rapidly dwindling habitat. Nikon D700 with Nikkor 17-35mm lens (at 17mm) ISO 800, f/3.5 at 1/400th of a second
Your endangered black-crested macaque makes his uniquely moving statement. Your “mistake”, in capturing this image with the vignetting caused by the inadvertently abandoned filter holder on your lens, beautifully serves to underscore the macaque’s visible grief and outrage about his diminishing, bleak habitat. Well done!
We use cookies to enhance your experience while using our website. If you are using our Services via a browser you can restrict, block or remove cookies through your web browser settings. We also use content and scripts from third parties that may use tracking technologies. You can selectively provide your consent below to allow such third party embeds. For complete information about the cookies we use, data we collect and how we process them, please check our Privacy Policy
This image was a bit of a mistake. I was photographing critically endangered black-crested macaques on the island of Sulawesi in Indonesia. When I saw this macaque sitting in the middle of a charred field — the result of an illegal slash and burn fire — he seemed as if he was crying out at the short-sighted practice of his fellow primates. I quickly grabbed my second camera with wide angle lens attached and took the shot without realizing that I had left a filter holder screwed in, causing extreme vignetting at 17mm. But the result seemed to work, as if the macaque was at the wrong end of a gun, with little hope for survival if local villagers continue to encroach upon his rapidly dwindling habitat.
Sean you captured it seems the Raw Emotion of this photo knowing what the future will hold for them if this does not stop
Aunt Sue
——- I cry for my charred beloved
Wow, what a beautiful mistake. This is incredible Crane.
Your endangered black-crested macaque makes his uniquely moving statement. Your “mistake”, in capturing this image with the vignetting caused by the inadvertently abandoned filter holder on your lens, beautifully serves to underscore the macaque’s visible grief and outrage about his diminishing, bleak habitat. Well done!
And now vignetting is applied to photos! Albeit, not as pronounced as this, but it is gaining in popularity. Lucky ‘mistake’!