peak nature

This morning I was in my friend’s front garden photographing some of the birds that stop by and feed there. As a juvenile blackbird hopped out from under the hedge, I had a sudden thought about what an animal like that has to put up with right from the beginning of its life.

As human’s we have no way of really appreciating or perhaps I should say empathising with how wildlife survives. We’ve engineered our environments to such an incredible extent that we’re shielded from what, to just about every other species, are everyday trials of life. The most amazing thing is that for most of the time, the wildlife seems to survive effortlessly. We don’t really consider what might actually be going on. This sounds like blissful ignorance and while this might seem like an uneducated stand point it might be all too easy to get very low when you consider the reality of the typical natural history of a common garden animal.

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At the beginning of March I began getting ready for a project on local Buzzards. The species is probably the UK’s most common raptor so clearly finding them wasn’t going to prove a problem. Although the species is typically found over farmland and moorland, you’ll often see them close to large towns and cities as, perhaps, most notoriously by the side of busy roads and motorways. So much so that in Scotland, they’ve earned the name the ‘telegraph pole eagle’.

Several pairs occupy territories close to where I live so now that I knew they were present, the next stage was to figure out where to shoot them. Buzzards enjoy soaring at altitude, using their excellent eyesight to survey the ground below for prey. They also enjoy feeding out in the open where they can keep an eye out for potential threats such as other Buzzards or humans.  This set the criteria for what should be a likely spot for Buzzards to easily find and feel comfortable feeding at. As with many similar projects, it’s often the case of asking permission to access land for the purposes of photography. I’ve found that in about 90% of cases, landowners are only too happy to let nature photographers access their land and often take an interest in what they are doing. The landowners themselves are often knowledgeable about the species on their land so you can do worse than knock on their door and ask.

Once I’d gained access to a suitable location I positioned a semi-permanent hide on March 10th (thanks Alex for the day’s grafting).

So, Buzzards – check; location – check; hide – check. Next up a period of familiarisation both for the buzzards and for me. Unfortunately, Derbyshire’s track record for killing raptors is pretty impressive. Gamekeepers and estate owners have been prosecuted for trapping, shooting and poisoning raptors for fear that they will reduce the numbers of their game birds. This practice has gone on for such a long time that species, such as Buzzards are very wary of humans and even signs of humans. The introduction of my hide would clearly need some getting used to.

Twelve days later (March 22nd) at 6:00am I’m beginning my first morning in the hide. It’s a long shot. Twelve days is not really long enough for the birds to get used to the hide but the weather and some spare time has provided a two day run for which to kick things off. The early start is there for a reason too. Although the Buzzards might disregard the hide, they will not be so forgiving if they see you entering it. It’s therefore common practice to get in and get set up before the sun is up. Once that’s done you can go for a nap until it’s light enough for the Buzzards to hunt so it’s not all bad… as long as you pack your thermals! Of course the same holds for leaving the hide so the days are pretty long.

After two days in the hide with bait in the form of roadkill laid out to entice the birds down, I’ve nothing to show for it. On day one a Buzzard did pass over the bait and got a good look at it but moved away again; probably still wary of the new structure in the field. I give the project a break for a week and return MArch 29th for another two day run. By this time the clocks have gone forward which doesn’t affect the Buzzards but means a start an hour earlier. Again, with two 12 hours shifts, there is no interest and the psychology comes into play. I start to ask questions. Am I too close to that road? Can they see me? Does the hide present a danger? Is the bait too exposed? Is it positioned too far from cover? And so on. I hate this phase, when patience gives way to minor panic.

Then reality kicks in. Let’s go over the facts: the hide has been in place for next to no time; I’ve only put in about 50 hours which is hardly anything; the Buzzards might need to get used to there being little cover available. Slowly the panicky feeling subsides and stubborn persistence digs itself in. April 4th saw an unexpected dump of snow presenting both an opportunity but a problem at the same time. The inclement weather would make hunting for live prey more difficult for the Buzzards, therefore they would make use of any carrion. However, this would be covered by the snow whereas the bait I put down would be visible. Unfortunately, I hadn’t counted on the strength of the wind on the hill where the hide was. It’s the first time I’d ever had to dig my way into a hide, filled with snow through the long (and permanently open) window. The result is shown below (photo from a phone). Needless to say it put a stop to the next day’s photography.

The Easter break took me to Wales for some coastal photography and so it was with some renewed excitement that I got back into the hide this morning at 5:00am. Bait out and camera set up and ready, I settled down for a few hours kip. By midday I hadn’t seen anything, not even heard the tell-tale, plaintive cry of the Buzzards and I was freezing.

Suddenly, without sign or sound of its arrival, a Buzzard was stood over the bait, 20 feet from the hide. Automatically I found my eye in the viewfinder with the camera focused on the Buzzard, looking in fantastic condition. Now came the scariest moment of all. The sound of a DSLR’s mirror slapping up and down is enough to spook any species at close range, let alone an already wary Buzzard and so with my breath held I let a single frame go. The Buzzard looked up for a fraction of a second in the opposite direction and then ducked its head again and continued to feed. Relief.

Spending a good 10 minutes feeding on the bait and about 300 frames later, it took flight off the hill and was gone only to return an hour and a half later to fill up its bulging crop. I left the hide with the aid of a ‘walkaway’ since it was still light outside.

So now begins a routine of regularly baiting the site and documenting the natural history of a truly beautiful raptor.

Many other wildlife photographers I know have been having huge success in photographing little owls. I’ve had a mixture of success and set backs (such as a cow almost giving birth on top of my hide) but these endearing birds are slightly addictive and despite my hide needing some repairs and cleaning, I’ll be back out with them.

The camera has been gathering dust as I’ve been catching up on some other areas of my life – including a fantastic camping trip to Mull and Iona. (I’ll be back with camera as soon as I can justify it!)

However, I was concerned to hear about a unfortunate incident in the Seychelles involving a man being killed in a shark that attacked him as he swam. The reports say the authorities did not make clear the dangers of swimming in the waters around the island but as a result of the attack, rewards are being offered to anyone who kills “the shark or sharks responsible”.

I can’t imagine the horror the man’s wife was put through and the event is a tragedy but will going in search of the shark and killing it stop future attacks? Can we blame an ancient species for doing what it does naturally?

I’ve been longing to be out with the Little Owl family I’ve been watching over the past week. So whilst waiting for that time to come, I’ve had the chance to question why I’m dying to spend 12 hours on my own in a tent in a field with only some cows for company.

Undoubtedly, photographing nature requires patience. So many factors are beyond your control it’s quite normal to have to wait for hours and often days in order to get what you want.

To non-photographers this can make photography seem like a very boring past-time, far removed from the initial excitement the phrase ‘nature photographer’ instills. Other people appear impressed by the ability to sit or lie on the ground for hours at a time so much so that some photographers are quick to highlight how long it took to create an image (often in freezing condition etc etc…). If you’re interested in others sharing your experiences and learning about the natural world themselves, telling them they have to wait 6 hours just for a glimpse won’t get the heart racing. What does get the adrenaline going is anticipation and expectation.

Believe it or not, on its own, waiting an eternity for an image isn’t all it’s cracked up to be.

So, in order to maximise success in the field, research is always an important first step. Try looking for penguin in the arctic. I exaggerate but you get the point. But by research I don’t mean, “Get your library card out, darling, here’s to a quite night in!”. Of course a bit of background reading is a good starting point but practical research is also essential. Try finding answers to these questions. Is the subject in your area? Are there an known hot-spots? Are there any unknown spots? Do you have any contacts that can assist you (landowners, conservationists, photographers, family)? Together this groundwork goes a long way to helping you know everything from when your subject is active to understanding where the sun will be to offer you some nice light.

Let’s face it, if you’re a professional photographer, creating images is your way of earning money. It’s not guaranteed but alternatively if you’re sat at home you’re guaranteed not to make anything; money or images! So spending vast amounts of time sitting about in a hide or otherwise can’t really be seen as a logical way of making a living, especially if the wait can be shortened with good research. Ultimately, it’s about balance and reward for your patience. Let’s get this straight though – I don’t want to advocate a ‘get in and out asap’ approach since the value of the long-term project is far to great to ignore but with careful consideration, days when you go out shooting can be made as productive as possible whilst minimising your presence and letting nature get on by itself.

So this is where the anticipation comes in. You’ve narrowed your window to what you think will return the best results. This could be anything between 2 hours when the light is right to 2 weeks in which there is a spawning period, migration interval, whatever. Now comes the test of your patience as well as your research. It’s important to remember that this is work and training. Look at the effort and time athletes put in to their chosen professional. Eating at least however many thousand kilojoules every day, going to the gym, getting up at 6am each morning to go running and none of this guarantees success. All of a sudden sitting under a hedge for 5 hours seems like a breeze. It’s similar for the photographer. But despite the differences in profession, the same drive exists. The same passion to succeed. The same exhilaration when it happens and the same frustration when it doesn’t.

This is where the passion, the excitement and the reward lies. There are more failures than successes – by far. Yet it’s the failures that keep you going.

On Saturday I spent most of the day in my tent hide avoiding harrassment from cows and studying a family of Little Owls. Although there was a good amount of activity, this was the first time I’d spend doing proper observations and as such the camera never made it out the bag.

Last night however, I was treated to a little more. Into hour 14 and the family came down to play.

Still plenty to work on, but for a relatively short space of time it’s a good start.

Setting up a routine for inviting wildlife down to the new hides at Norbury Manor has been surprisingly difficult. There is plenty of wildlife around and it’s very happy to devour what food we’ve been providing but setting up feeding stations to get the most appealing images and modifying the pool to maximise reflections has meant no real routine has been established. Luckily the woodland birds are quick to catch on to the changes and especially during the cold spell last year the feeders were very busy.

As with most rural areas Norbury has its own army of Pheasants and although they make great photographic subjects they also make light work of the food laid down. Hence the difficulty in getting a routine and method of keeping the food out of reach.

Bookings are now starting to come in which is great since, as a small business, these things take time and Derbyshire Life has also expressed an interest in doing a feature on one of the tuition courses which would be a fantastic piece of publicity.

Here are a couple of images from the pool hide showing the wonderful reflection shots and the old tree that the woodpecker likes to use.

Just completed a commission of 8 framed prints for a company setting up a new office in Wirksworth and now that the tuition courses at Norbury Manor are up and running with bookings starting to come in I have returned my attention to some of the projects even closer to home. It’s an hours game, an exercise in patience and something that, if successful, will give me the feeling of accomplishment and satisfaction.

Many of the most striking nature images nowadays are the product of (relatively) quick, organised tours where you pay to get close to the subject. They’re a fantastic business idea and something that will give you that feeling of satisfaction. At least for a while. Yet it doesn’t take long for me to begin thinking and feeling this ‘quick fix’ is somewhat lacking in substance. Putting the ground work in yourself will always give you more satisfaction in the long run and hopefully provide you with a better understanding of the subject.

So entering the fourth month of providing food for some local foxes, it’s time to up the work load and put some serious hours in. Surveying a new area of farmland revealed several potential earths backed up by some fresh scats and as well as roosting barn owl. It quickly occurred to me that narrowing down the earth might still be another 2 or three weeks work and all the time the cubs are getting bigger and learning to become wary of humans. Time is now a factor. And the result? An even greater ambition to witness, experience and, as a bonus, photograph these animals not a mile from my home.

Fingers crossed for the next few days.

Yesterday saw the launch of a venture in my photography career. Norbury Manor Photography has been set up by my friends Alex and Helena Latham-Boal to provide nature photography tuition courses for photographers of all levels. They have employed me to lead these courses throughout the year and advise them on some of the nature-related aspects of the project.

Norbury is situated in very much rural Derbyshire making it an ideal location for getting close to nature. With its own private grounds, the manor now houses two photography hides, with one situated next to a purpose built pool in order to create beautiful reflection photographs. Nearby woodlands host buzzards, foxes, ravens and the usual variety of woodland birds and along the river you can hear kingfishers, mandarin duck along with more common species.

The first tuition course of the season was very well received with guests giving us their feedback on the Norbury Blog. Topped off with a great lunch at the manor house and some stonking weather, I can’t wait for the next one.

If you’re in the area come and see what’s on offer.

Having neglected processing images in favour of other work, I thought I might share some images recently processed and ready for distribution.

It was June 2010 that I lasted posted an image of a Brown Hare. I can vividly remember crawling towards the hare, expecting it to dart off at any moment. Yet me luck held out and I secured some images. This time round I was in a different field at a different time of year with a different hare. Around this time of year Brown Hares are boxing. The initial explanation for this was males competing to hold the right to mate with the doe but it was later discovered that it is females that box with males to show they aren’t willing to mate. Despite spending a considerable time observing these hares, boxing seems to be the last thing on their minds. This series was of one individual I approached while it rested in the open. Aware that I was out of cover, I tried to move directly in front of the hare where their vision is slightly poorer.

On waking up, the hare had a wonderful stretch revealing those long and powerful hind legs that so often put 300 yards between me and their owner in a matter or seconds.