What kind of Wildlife Photographer Are "YOU"

Awesome.
What beautiful images.
How nice to see Thanks for posting

Another pair of flying foxes playfully scrapping with each other . And Yes believe it or not it was/is playful. These do it all the time. This pair played this way for a good 20 mins till they got tired and went to sleep

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I recently became the proud owner of a Sigma 60-600 Sports zoom lens and was looking forward to trying it on on some wildlife. However, since it's not viable to travel overseas I decided to go to the local zoo, which has been rather gutted as they do massive renovations, so there are many fewer animals to see. One sad note was that our two African (correction Asian) elephants are being sent elsewhere. Apparently they need to breed, but have been unsuccessful with artificial insemination, so they are going to find a new home with a group that includes males.

I thought I might start with them so took my first (purely for orientation) shot thus:

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As she came into a better position, I was able to take some more shots, trying to capture what I felt was a rather melancholy feeling I got from this magnificent creature, so used to roaming over great distances with it's family:

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Tronhard wrote in post #19161269
As she came into a better position, I was able to take some more shots, trying to capture what I felt was a rather melancholy feeling I got from this magnificent creature, so used to roaming over great distances with it's family:

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and

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forum: Wildlife

I was exploring if a low key light would add more drama to the subject.

I find zoos quite challenging as the animals are often not behaving as they would normally in the wild - feeling the confinement of their enclosures, and there are often hoards of people. At this time of the year, being on the cusp of summer and the end of the school year, there are lots of screaming school parties. Luckily not too many tourists but still, it was pretty crowded. At times I was recalling the old music hall joke: "I won't say it wasn't crowded, but if the woman in front of me hadn't had her ears pierced, I wouldn't have seen anything at all!"

ALL of your photos are excellent!!!!

Playing hide and seek with a Franklin's grouse this morning.

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Inspeqtor wrote in post #19161314
ALL of your photos are excellent!!!!

Thank you Charles, that is a very generous comment. It's a journey... one that will be easier when this bug goes away!

Tronhard wrote in post #19161266
I recently became the proud owner of a Sigma 60-600 Sports zoom lens and was looking forward to trying it on on some wildlife. However, since it's not viable to travel overseas I decided to go to the local zoo, which has been rather gutted as they do massive renovations, so there are many fewer animals to see. One sad note was that our two African elephants are being sent elsewhere. Apparently they need to breed, but have been unsuccessful with artificial insemination, so they are going to find a new home with a group that includes males.

I thought I might start with them so took my first (purely for orientation) shot thus:

Hosted photo: posted by Tronhard in
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forum: Wildlife

I wanted to capture the personality of these magnificent creatures, so I focused on the eyes. This is my first effort:

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continued...

Love these!
Was "African" a typo? To my eyes these are of the Indian variety.

Hi Jake

Thanks for you comments and question. You are right, they are in fact Asian elephants although they are not from India - I think they are from Burma from what I can find out.

It will be such a shame to lose them, but if it means they lead a more fulfilling life I can only support their move.

The major renovations to the zoo have cost a lot of animals. We had hippos before and they and our tigers have gone too. The zoo left the signs up until enough people complained that they could not see the animals. This was all supposed to be done and back to normal by now, but COVID has caused many disruptions to their schedule and it will not be until well into 2021 before construction ends.

Still, we have little to complain about. We lead virtually normal lives with no limitations except a requirement to wear masks on public transit in our biggest city, Auckland. We are also encouraged to use the government's COVID tracing app, but that's about it. It has been some time since we have had a community case and while large numbers (over 58,000) Kiwis, permanent residents, and essential workers have come in, the cases they bring with them are being caught at the borders by managed isolation. Anyone with symptoms is transferred to quarantine until they are deemed safe.

So, considering the difficulties facing many other countries, we have little to moan about.

clipper_from_oz wrote in post #19158693
Another pair of flying foxes playfully scrapping with each other . And Yes believe it or not it was/is playful. These do it all the time. This pair played this way for a good 20 mins till they got tired and went to sleep

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Fantastic image. Just love the interaction.

Monarch Butterfly migration along the Central California coast

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Maureen Souza wrote in post #19167417
Monarch Butterfly migration along the Central California coast

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WOW!! I have never in my life seen THAT many butterflies in one location before!! WOW!!

Maureen Souza wrote in post #19167417
Monarch Butterfly migration along the Central California coast

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Very nice!

But, who are you and where have you been?

Very funny. I have been so busy! I home school my youngest 3 grandkids 30 hours a week and have just completed a 4 month re-model of my Master bedroom & bathroom. I did a bunch of the work myself and only called in the pros for moving my shower, re-plumbing and moving the electrical. I did the vanity, drywalling, chandelier installment, took down one huge mirror & put up 2 smaller mirrors and painted the walls & ceiling and put in new baseboards. I also had new flooring installed.

There is a grove of eucalyptus trees that is a stopping spot for them south of Monterey. Lots of people walk through the grove to see them each year. It is sooooo cool!