September 30, 2009

charge!

such a glorious day today, perfect sky, perfect sun, perfect temperature...perfect, perfect, perfect. so perfect that no one could stay inside. so i went to the zoo. our zoo is not very big but it's very nice with the habitats done very naturally. i took tons of pictures, well by tons i mean 212 but when you shoot in raw, that takes forever to download. (i finally made the commitment to raw but boy does it take up space due to the file size)

the white bengal tigers were gorgeous. this beauty posed for quite a while while trying to measure up if i was a tasty morsel that he could reach. in the meantime, his partner sized up the neighbors. (there is a fence between the tigers and the cage of gazelles and deer. and the deer enjoyed taunting the tigers.)

i also spent a lot of time at the elephant habitat. the little baby elephant was so very, very, very cute. when i first got to the area, he was in the corner and was routed out of hiding by mom. while dad had fun eating hay, mom and baby patrolled the enclave, with nudges back in line when he would stray off. this shot was so sweet of them touching noses. (awwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww)



how can your heart not melt at that?

now for the adventure part of the program. i carried my tripod today - a tripod is always good when i work with my 70mm-300mm zoom lens as the focus can get really soft at the long end, plus with the lowest aperture at f/6.3 fully zoomed, that is a very slow shutter. so, when i got the the lions, i moved back and forth with the tripod trying to find: (1) a clean enough place in the glass to see the lions; (2) an angle where i could see both of them; and (3) maybe a good place for a close-up. the lion you see in the shot is not a female lion as you automatically think. it's a castrated male - his mother died not too long after he was born, so he was castrated to help with severe separation anxiety he was experiencing. (sounds a bit harsh if you ask me - but i'm not a vet.)

anyway, as i worked with the tripod - he was watching me watching him. when i moved the tripod close to the glass, i suddenly noticed he was running towards me - well, a fast trot at least. all the time i was thinking, 'steady, steady, steady - square the shot, square the shot.' but all my hands would do is stand there in shock, getting off this one shot just before he roared. after, he went back and laid down with his brother. it was something like, 'leave me alone damn human' or maybe, (to paraphrase) 'do not meddle with the naps of lions because thou art crispy and taste good with ketchup'.

it was a good day...maybe if i closed my eyes tightly and imagined, i had a farm in africa.

17 comments:

  1. Great shots Char! I know what you mean about raw files...sheesh, my hard drive is filling up fast!!! Love the bottom photo...kinda makes you glad there is glass there, no?

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  2. The white bengal tiger is so gorgeous!
    That lioness looks like she was charging towards you Char?! ...wow!!
    Haven't been to a zoo for such a long time...must go one of these days!

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  3. Zoo's are fantastic places to shoot animals...and you really got a beautiful shot of the Bengal Tiger...
    Have a good evening.
    Char

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  4. some days are perfect for the zoo...well, except weekends where hoards of people would have gotten in your line of vision and tripped over your tripod while eating cotton candy....

    and shooting raw....I never do or have. did you love it ? is it frustrating ? would you do it all the time ?

    and heck...you can send me an email if you have time to answer my pesty questions....

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  5. I still love the zoo.The elephants are my favorite.

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  6. Gorgeous, gorgeous photographs. Really, I feel like I was right there at the zoo with you. And I'm curious, what is shooting in raw? Does it have anything to do with the amazing detail here?

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  7. i never get good zoo shots...but you did a wonderful job! so happy you shared them and your story. we had a gorilla charge at us one time and my girls were little. it was amazing and scary all at the same time. we still talk about it!

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  8. Oh, these are beautiful Char! I love the elephant mother and little one. Love it!!

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  9. I hate carrying my tripod it's so heavy and bulky. I love the zoo. You photo of the elephants is priceless.

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  10. wonderful shots!!

    Have a Beautiful Day!
    xo Laura

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  11. and steady you were! gorgeous shots! and what glass?!! ; ) brilliant.

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  12. I keep saying I want to get to the zoo, haven't been in way over a decade.

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  13. What fun....I have not been to a zoo in years. There is one in New Orleans...I think Holly and I will have to make the trip one day!

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  14. Ooh, great pix! I love going to the zoo. I keep trying to get my sis to go back with me, cuz last time I had to rush off to pick up the hubby. Maybe before the weather gets too cold/rainy...

    Sounds like it was a wonderful day :)

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  15. lovely the picture char! It's been a long time since I have not been to the zoo.

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  16. Thank you for the visit to the zoo! I feel like a child again.

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  17. These are wonderful, wonderful. Just perfect. What can't you do with a camera, my friend? What can't you do?

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i feel as if each comment was between us as we sat and sipped something warm....i love to hear what you're thinking.