Captivating

 My last post was almost 3 months ago, following a trip to the zoo and as it happens this post also follows a further trip to the zoo. I didn't get to see many of the species I had hoped to see so I am thinking that I may need to invest in a season ticket so I can go back more frequently. 

My last post was exclusively photos of a cheetah and today I will include more shots of the cheetah because it is my favourite of  the big cats. I also include some shots of  the bush dogs which are really endearing creatures, one of a tiger and some shots of an Orang Utan proving that he is the King of the swingers. 

I think I have some photos of a mongoose from my previous visit but I need to look through those for another day.

Kitty Kat

 I always love photographing wildlife whether it is near my local beach, at a nature reserve or even in a zoo. I would love to travel and photograph exotic creatures in their natural habitat but there are lots of reasons why that isn't possible every now and then it is great to visit a zoo and get some exotic shots closer to home. Just as in the wild taking photos of any of the animals in the zoo requires a lot of patience and a degree of luck, especially if you want natural looking shots. 

I especially love the big cats and I was lucky enough to see the snow leopards, a Siberian tiger and the cheetah all of which are absolutely beautiful. I am always drawn to the cheetah though because they have such grace and despite being an apex predator with some serious skills they can still manage to charm like a domestic cat.

Here are a few of my cheetah images from my recent zoo visit...

Feathers and Fluff

 

Here we have a selection of birds starting at the top with a mallard duckling, then a black necked stilt and finally a Puna teal.

All of the pictures were taken in Chester Zoo but the first two species can be seen in the wild around the UK whereas the teal is a resident of the Andes in Peru. It has a striking blue bill.

The ducklings were sat with their mother in the shade of a picnic table and while a common sight I couldn't resist the calm relaxed expressions.

The stilt is very elegant and I loved the reflections as it carefully waded through its pool in search of food.

Mandrill... and why edit!

It has been quite some time since I visited the zoo so it was really lovely to go along recently for my grandson's very first zoo trip. I didn't take nearly as many photos as I normally might have done but I did manage to get a few along the way while listening to my grandsons efforts to mimic different animal sounds.

In the past it has been almost impossible to get a decent shot of the mandrills as they have been behind glass, but since my last visit a number of the animals have been moved to different enclosures and this meant that the mandrills were outdoors and more easy to see. However these images are a perfect example of why editing photos is often necessary. They were all shot using a high ISO (1250), given that the beast was hiding in the shade of the shrubs and trees, but with a relatively fast shutter speed (1/600sec) to freeze the action as the Mandrill was pacing about. This combination was intended to keep noise to a minimum and produce a clear image. The fifth image in this selection is unedited to show that without some essential tweaks the picture would be pretty useless. If I had used a higher ISO or a slower shutter speed there would have been too much grain and blur so again the images would have been useless. Editing software however allows those problems to be solved, showing off this magnificent creature to stunning effect which would otherwise not have been possible. 
 

Grey Heron

Tamron 150mm- 600mm F/5 - 6.3

ISO 400   600mm   F/6.3    1/320 sec

I have really liked the black and white pictures that I shared over the past few days and I think this grey heron looks really good in black and white too.

It was actually sat overlooking the penguin pool at Chester Zoo, perhaps in the hope of stealing a free meal. He really is a handsome fellow

"Beautiful Squirrels"

These rare Prevost Squirrels ( Callosciurus prevostii) or Tri-Coloured Squirrels from South East Asia belong to a genus of squirrels which are collectively known as "Beautiful Squirrels" and it is easy to see why.

Chester Zoo has a family group of five with three young being born earlier this year. I wouldn't be at all surprised if those numbers increase in about six weeks time given the activity going on in the enclosure during my visit to the zoo yesterday...

Look Mum, I'm up a tree!

This cute little fella is an Andean Bear cub and was one of the reasons for my decision to visit Chester Zoo. I wasn't entirely sure I would get to see him but I was lucky because he was out with his  mother enjoying the fine summer sunshine and exploring the enclosure. He was turning over stones and rolling around and climbing the tree. He went to the very top with ease, it was coming down, as he is in this picture that seemed to give him more of a problem. It was very entertaining and a great photo opportunity.

Pink

Each of these buds resembles a miniature tulip, but of course they're not tulips. I have called the post today Pink but actually I have no idea what colour these flowers are, when I asked I was given at least 3 different answers so I have settled on pink.

Small and Delicate

Last week I spent a couple of hours at the zoo and I began by taking some pictures of some of the flowers around a few of the animal enclosures. I got a few strange looks from some of the zoo'z visitors, perhaps they thought I was missing the point when there were monkeys and all manner of other creatures to see. However I am always on the lookout for a good shot and that means not always going for the obvious.

I don't know what these particular flowers are but I hope you will agree they are very pretty. Each individual flower is really tiny but they are perfectly formed and combine to make a lovely plant.

A Somnolent Posture

When I was younger I used to enjoy listening to the monologues of Stanley Holloway and in particular the stories of Albert and the Lion which I memorised.

When I was at the zoo and I saw this lion laid out on this log I recalled the line "He lay in a somnolent posture with the side of his face on the bars..." The lion in the poem was Clarence and obviously a "he" and the lion in this shot is obviously a "she"  but it definitely fits the bill.

You've gotta love a Robin

So there I was walking around the zoo, I had spent about 40 minutes watching the Red Pandas and after getting a few decent shots I was heading over to look at some owls when this noisy little Robin flew past me and settled on a post just off the main path. I hadn't intended to take any pictures of it, after all Robins are everywhere and I didn't go to the zoo to look at common garden birds. But I do love Robins and I know there's a few of you out there who would say "you've gotta love a Robin" and just look at him, he was watching me so intently it seemed rude to ignore him. I love the pose  and I like the way the blurred background with the shaft of light highlights the bird perfectly. 

Just as it would have been rude not to take the shot it would be rude not to share it, so please take a few moments to enjoy this beautiful bird and I hope that like me, your day was just a little bit brighter for seeing it.

Look Into My Eyes

I can't decide whether this elephant looks happy or sad. I am slightly surprised how small its eye is in comparison to the size of its head. I think it makes a great photo though.

P p p pick up a Penguin

and a pigeon

and a great grey owl

And while we're at it... a red breasted goose