Is this picture fake?

I don't have the best eye in picking out fakes, however, the lighting seems right. I just think its almost too perfect of a shot.

What do you think?

Squirrel Portrait Photo, Banff Wallpaper -- National Geographic Photo of the Day

Looks really cool!

looks fake to me

just a green screened chipmunk I'm pretty sure.

going towards fake... Why would you set up a shot of such a vast expanse and yourself not being centered in the shot..
The focusing looks as if its true to real time.. then again you look at bottom left of the squirrel and the coloring seems to be out on his fur
Mmmmmmmm undecided

Primarily because the first thing they teach you in any photography class is to not center the subject. Shots with centered subjects tend to be boring as they do not cause your eyes to naturally move across the image. The composition would have sucked with the two people in the center.

Dysfunction said:

Primarily because the first thing they teach you in any photography class is to not center the subject. Shots with centered subjects tend to be boring as they do not cause your eyes to naturally move across the image. The composition would have sucked with the two people in the center.

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Shows im not a photographer then lol

I vote that it's real. Let me explain: I simply zoomed in really close to the whiskers area via ctrl+scroll, and quickly looked over and found no "mistakes"
I think it might be real.
But in general, if you have to ask, it is fake.

I say fake. You would not center because

1.) Center composition is LAME.

2.) They probably wanted to get some of the mountain scene in.

But what are the odds of the rodent popping up right smack in the center? I saw very little.

And why would the camera still be focusing after they set the timer? It shouldn't be.

Also, How could they have not noticed the rodent popped into their photo? It obviously didn't just get into the frame, as there would be motion blur. Those things can hardly stand still, also, so I don't think it would be so crisp.

If it were a digital camera there is very little control between button press and picture take and at their distance even eyeballing squirrel it would be difficult to be sure if it was in the pic - Camera should focus just before shutter release hence squirrel in focus and them being not quite in focus. Real is my guess.

I'd say it is real. The chances of it happening are small, but it isn't impossible as far as I know and it would be really really hard to fake it in this quality.

I would say real, especially since the critter seems to have caused the autofocus to focus on him

Real, as in not digitally faked. Possibly staged.

BlueMac said:

And why would the camera still be focusing after they set the timer? It shouldn't be.

Also, How could they have not noticed the rodent popped into their photo? It obviously didn't just get into the frame, as there would be motion blur. Those things can hardly stand still, also, so I don't think it would be so crisp.

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That depends entirely on the camera and the settings... it could quite possibly still be focusing.

In a scene that sunlit, the shutter speed would probably be around 1/4000 of a second. No matter how fast these things seems to move, getting one in sharp focus in an area that well lit wouldn't be too hard.

I think it's real.

Leukeh said:

In a scene that sunlit, the shutter speed would probably be around 1/4000 of a second. No matter how fast these things seems to move, getting one in sharp focus in an area that well lit wouldn't be too hard.

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After doing some research on photography i agree with ^
Well i have now voted yes...
Crasher the squirrel is now a world wide internet phenomenon .... He is appering anywhere and every where..... Please let all no if this is faked
http://resources1.news.com.au/images/2009/08/17/1225762/824745-dtgall-crasher-squirrel.jpg

LMAO
I do believe the original post pic is the real deal

THE SQUIRRELIZER: http://www.lutralutra.co.uk/

Stuffed squirrel?

Either it's real or these two poor bums need to get a life...

BlueMac, you obviously have very little experience with small critters.

I see squirrels sit deathly still for as long as 3 minutes at a time while they are sniffing the air or doing whatever. If you require proof, I can leave my digital camera outside recording live for an hour to catch a squirrel sit dead still.

If they don't sit still for you, perhaps you should stop moving when you are near them. Undoubtedly their constant motion around you is a reaction to you.

I heard squirrels make a good stew, although it sounds really nasty =p