Zoo Animals

Bkop wrote in post #18642828
=Bkopperl;18642828]Cou​ple more

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forum: Wildlife

Best of the bunch!

thanks!

“I may be a lizard to you but in my world, I am a Dragon!”

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Canonised wrote in post #18645061
“I may be a lizard to you but in my world, I am a Dragon!”

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Nice shot

Using 5D3 with 400mm f4 DO2.

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The Alpha male Orangutan is both old and huge. But seems very gentle to its family. Doesn’t he look a little like ‘Harry and the Hendersons’ Bigfoot?

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Nice serie

Those who spend time observing the primates in captivity will notice that they can be loving to their offsprings and mates. Oddly enough, their actions can often be very human as we see here.

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A full grown adult Cheetah is not a small animal. Up close it is larger than a full grown St Bernard. But still significantly smaller than Lions. Gorgeous animals that look deceptively placid. But their hunting instincts are never fully tamed in Zoos. Here it heard noises that made it perk up.

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Canonised wrote in post #18650865
Those who spend time observing the primates in captivity will notice that they can be loving to their offsprings and mates. Oddly enough, their actions can often be very human as we see here.

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Beautiful image of a lovely scene.

Canonised wrote in post #18650865
Those who spend time observing the primates in captivity will notice that they can be loving to their offsprings and mates. Oddly enough, their actions can often be very human as we see here.

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Always nice moment and shot

Phil.H wrote in post #18651173
Beautiful image of a lovely scene.

SCALPA wrote in post #18651212
Always nice moment and shot

Thanks very much!

Sharing an observation.

Some animals like Leopards, Pumas, Gorillas aren’t found in Zoos with open enclosures. Or at the very least open skies but the public can only view through thick Perspex or Glass. These are either powerful animals that can jump great distances (or climb walls or trees) or are too dangerous to be separated by a moat only.

At my local zoo, we dont use glass and as a result the Perspex is often badly scratched on both sides causing good photography to be near impossible. Glass is a much better material that can be cleaned up but still, it may be stained on the inside of the enclosure. So most of the time, I dont even try to capture an image of animals behind Perspex.

The second type that is often very common is chain link fencing (which is actually easier to shoot through). I think more and more Zoos stopped using chain linked fences to avoid that semblance of the animals as being in total captivity like prisoners. Unfortunately no Zoo can replicate the pure freedom that each animal wants.

But Zoos today are far more humane than it was three decades ago. When I was a child 4 decades ago, Zoos were considered an evil place where poor animals were held as exhibits. But today, with so much of wilderness gone and so many animals are endangered, we get to see endangered animals only in Zoos today. How things have turned around but this unfortunate situation was caused by humans not being good stewards of our wildlife.

Q. When is the best time for Zoo photography?

A. I get asked this very often. Two critical factors (that can be planned for, or almost) for great Zoo images. These two also applies to safari or animals in the wild.

The first is quality of light. In most temperate countries, midday summer time means clear blue skies with very harsh sunlight. Causing high contrast images with overblown highlights and dark clear lined shadows. If you suffer from the blessing of too much light, it is always best to try to plan for either early morning or late afternoon light. Otherwise, the best days are actually overcast days. The overcast days convey much softer shadows and easier to meter for the subject. However, whether there is harsh light or soft light, is going to be of use, is totally dependent on where the subject is going to be. In the open or amongst the trees or in the shade?

The second factor - is when are the animals most active? Simply 15-20 minutes before their daily feeding. This is an important factor! Times before this or after meals, animals goes into slumber or into hiding. So do your homework and find out when your favoured animal is going to be fed.

So the difficulty as you can imagine is to find an overlap between time of feeding and time to shoot in good light. Sometimes it could never happen because feeding is directly in midday. One can try to plan as much as you can. Be familiar with the layout of the enclosure and see if there is a position that you could be located to take the best in the given situation. Homework is critical. Familiarity with your zoo is critical.

Remember, in wildlife photography, it is experience, planning, and repetitive shoots that brings out the best. Even on safaris.

Hope this helps!

Canonised wrote in post #18651478
The second type that is often very common is chain link fencing (which is actually easier to shoot through). I think more and more Zoos stopped using chain linked fences to avoid that semblance of the animals as being in total captivity like prisoners. Unfortunately no Zoo can replicate the pure freedom that each animal wants.

I agree, I don't like Chain link, makes it look like the animals are in jail. I went to the big San Diego Zoo Safari park and all the big cats were sleeping but it is a very nice park on 1800 acres.

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