I’ve just returned for an amazing private viewing and auction evening in London as the Green Party unveiled its first ever large scale art exhibition at the Hoxton Arches gallery in London. It featured works donated by 50 green-minded artists ranging from household names in contemporary art to exciting up and coming street artists and everything in between.
I’m pleased to announce that I’ve been invited to the Green Party of England and Wales exhibition in London at Hoxton Arches. I will be giving a talk and presentation on Tuesday the 18th of October during the private viewing & auction evening.
Im pleased to annouce as part of my ongoing work with Nikon, Japan they have recently released more of my work on the “Eyes of Nikon” page. I have tested the Nikon 200-500mm lens along with the D810 camera now for a while and its brilliant and very versatile and I give my thoughts of this lens and the 16mm fisheye lens while testing in the real world of wildlife
I’m pleased to announce that I have been asked back to the amazing Natural History Museum in London to present two talks on different days as part of their season of Salgado-related talks in the Darwin Centre’s Attenborough Studio. These form part of their daily Nature Live programme of events. To see the Salgado events please click here.
I have just had two amazing days presenting my talks from my recent trip to Sumatra alongside Panut the founder of OIC from Sumatra. A big thank you to everyone that attended the Spotlight Sumatra talks in the Natural History Museum, London and Chester Zoo. I’ve only been back from Sumatra a few weeks and my trip is still so raw, with every image I process and publish taking me back there. I had amazing access over the two weeks and the images formed the basis of my talks. To speak at two such amazing and well respected places was a great honour for me.
I’ve made many visits to both places since childhood, Chester Zoo is an hour away from where I live and has an amazing successful breeding programme with all its animals but more so the very rare wildlife entrusted into its keeping. Sumatran animals are doing so well at the zoo. The Sumatran Tiger and the Sumatran Orangutans all giving birth to babies there. I met some amazing, passionate people during our time there all doing amazing work. The zoo does so much for wildlife conservation around the world. I have visited many places being a wildlife photographer from Madagascar to India and very often the locals in the countries I visit always mention Chester Zoo somewhere in our talks, that just shows you how respected this place is.
Helen Director of SOS, Panut and I had a guided tour of the zoo by vet Steve Unwin. I had sat in on a meeting he’d being having earlier with Panut and Helen and other important staff from the zoo. I was amazed at his knowledge and passion for the Orangutans. His no-nonsense approach really struck a chord with me and afterwards I told him. Time is running out for many animals throughout the world, but the problem is so acute now for the Sumatran Orangutan that everybody using all their knowledge and expertise needs to come together to help save this first great ape that may become extinct should current trends of de-forestation in Sumatra be allowed to continue. These words were echoed throughout Steve’s conversions.
During our visit we witnessed the new baby Sumatran Orangutan that was born there last week. His proud mum, Emma who was showing off here new baby boy to the public. Holding the baby so close reminded me of their wild counterparts in Sumatra. I have never witnessed such a close bond between mum and baby outside of humans during those encounters I saw in Sumatra and the same bond was clear to see here in Chester Zoo. Click here to read this amazing news.
Both talks were full houses and again I cannot thank everyone enough for attending and showing their support for the problems facing the Orangutans and their rainforest habitat. I met some wonderful, lovely people during those two days. I met some of the Sumatran Orangutan Society trustees who were all very nice, thank you all for helping Helen and SOS each of you. Thank you to the guys at the Natural History Museum for all your help in setting up the talks and slideshow. Special thanks to our host who helped Panut and me through it all, Ana Rita and kind lady.
Thank you to everyone from Chester Zoo for caring so much about the wildlife within your zoo and around the world. We had two lovely ladies helping us through the talks, comparing and doing the raffle. So a massive thanks you to Penny and Andrea for your help. Both have worked for many years at the zoo doing wonderful work, I hope we can see you all again in the future doing something along the same lines.
Lastly a huge thank you to everyone who attended both talks, what’s happening in Sumatra cannot go on any longer unchecked. With firm and loyal support small things will lead to change on the ground there and in turn a safer world for the Orangutans. I’d like to finish this blog with one of the presentations I showed. Just processing these images brought every emotion I went through in Sumatra flooding back to me. It’s a mixture of what I saw during my time there. It upsets me just watching this clip such was the effect this place and trip had on me. For best results watch in HD on YouTube full screen here.
The Spotlight Sumatra talks have been hugely successful already, raising money for SOS from prints, and many other items. Showing through powerful presentations what is happening out there. If you are a school. Trust, Zoo, Camera Club or anything like that who would like to host this series of talks then please get in touch with Helen Buckland, UK Director SOS here. Alternative contact me through email here many thanks.
The onset of autumn is just around the corner now, as the trees and plants lose their prominent green colour and replace it with those wonderful yellow and red colours. Symbolizing the changing seasons, as we leave the summer and enter into the lovely season of autumn, trees are left exposed to the elements, giving that minimalistic feel in its place. Woodland and parkland echo to the noise of Red and Fallow deer roaring and grunting during the annual ritual of the rut. All is quiet until the silence is broken with the dawn roars during this period of frenetic activity.
I have been really busy with one to ones and my own work over the last couple of weeks as I’ve noticed a slight nip in temperatures and the evenings are beginning to draw in. I have found a few new sites that look really promising, more news in the future fingers crossed, and while spending quite a bit of time at one I managed to capture this male Stonechat in the setting sun, with the slight autumn colours forming the background.
I’ve also been revisiting my Watervole site, watching where this fellow feeds and comes ashore, I was able to photograph him on the riverbank here, just sniffing the air in the image below, such wonderful creatures to watch.
Birds are on the move everywhere now and autumn is a great time of activity as young birds seek their own territories as migrants birds undertake their extraordinary journeys around the world. All around our coast you’ll see alot of action too, with Seals, wintering flocks of birds, vast influxes of Pink foot, Brent Geese.
I really look forward to welcoming our winter visitors that spend their time on our shores during this time, returning in early spring to the breeding grounds back home. The bounty of food that litters the land during the autumn months brings many species out as they gorge on natures offering before the cold of winter sets in. You also get lovely light with the shorter days and colder temperatures all adding so much to any image.
Whooper Swans are one of my favourite as they travel south from their arctic breeding grounds to spend their winters in the UK, a beautiful and elegant bird. Another great event in natures calendar shortly is the deer rut, an event that reaches its peak in mid October. This year as well as visiting the sites within the UK I will be making my way north to Scotland hoping to capture this amazing event within the dramatic surroundings this part of the UK offers, along with some lovely autumn light fingers crossed.
The Red deer stag is Britains largest land mammal, during the rut they advertise their presence, power and control over a harem of females with dawn roars which echo for miles. When rivals cannot be separted on their roars alone things turn physical then as the stags with antlers locked push each other, trying to force the other to the ground. The risks are high though with massive, sharp antlers which can inflict seroius, even mortal wounds. The rewards though are great, as the dominant male wins the chance to father all of the next years offspring from the harem.
Lots of wonderful events within natures calendar coming up over the next few months which I am hoping to capture with my camera. Wildlife changing with the seasons, one such animal I have spent a lot of my time on during the summer months is the Mountain Hare which turns white with the onset of autumn/winter. The Peak District is a great place for this mammal and outside of Scotland is the only other place they live in the wild after being introduced some years ago now.
Towards the end of September I will be at the Outdoor Trade show at Stoneleigh Park, Warwickshire with 511 Tactical UK clothing stand. I have been testing some items kindly sent to me from 511 over the last six months in different climates, I have found them to be really comfortable and very hard wearing in the field, a full review will be posted soon on my blog. Ray Mears, TV presenter who also uses this brand of clothing will also be there on the Monday so if you are in the area drop in, or alternatively see their website here for full product range.
PhotoTraining4U is aimed at both professional and amateur photographers alike and is structured into bite size learning films, over 800 at present, each around 20 minutes. It’s online quality training for photographers for an affordable price. This type of training enables photographers of all levels to learn new techniques on every subject.
After a recent meeting I am pleased to say I have been asked to do some filming with the team, covering how I work in the field, giving helpful tips and advice in order that people can capture those amazing moments in nature that they see. At the same time learning more about key elements when working with wild animals, that in turn will help you read what’s happening around you, giving better results with your own wildlife photography. I will update my blog once the filming is complete which is due to start in the last week of September.
All the new dates for my workshops and photo tours are now up for next year, please click here to see them. Thanks you to those who have booked onto the Beauty of Wildlife 2 day wildlife workshop I am doing in conjunction with Calumet Photographic, Manchester. I look forward to meeting you all and helping you capture and see the beauty of wildlife.
I have a few places left for my Winter Waders, Norfolk 3 day photo tour in December. The Wash is England’s largest tidal estuary and one of the country’s most important winter feeding areas for waders and wildfowl and you’ll be spellbound as you watch tens of thousands of pink-footed geese from Iceland leave their night time roost site and head inland to feed. Norfolk in the winter offers so much in the way of wildlife and my aim on this 3 day workshop is to get you some of the best images of the winter wildlife Norfolk has to offer.
And lastly, I have an exhibition called “The Beauty of Wildlife” for one week from Sunday 27th November until Sunday 4th December 2011 at the amazing Winter Gardens in Sheffield. Officially opened by Queen Elizabeth 2nd, on 22nd, May 2003, this is one of the largest temperate glasshouses to be built in the UK and a beautiful place in which to display my work, with trees, plants and other fauna around creating a peaceful and tranquil environment.
I will be in attendance throughout the week. There is also coffee and light refreshments available within the site. So if you are in the area then please pop in to say hi and have a look at the exhibition. And if you have any questions or require any help or advice on the equipment you are using then I will do my best to help. Look forward to seeing you there.
I have just returned from three wonderful days at this years Birdfair. It was my first time as an exhibitor at the Birdfair after many, many years going as a visitor. We both really enjoyed the three days and found the organisation of the event brilliant and very professional, so full credit to the staff and volunteers. My stand was set up in the same way as my other exhibitions at Buxton, Derbyshire, with the idea of creating a gallery-style format giving people space to walk around and the oppotunity to ask anything they wished about my images.
As every image I take has a name and meaning to why I took it, I like to explain the reasons, style and what I was trying to achieve in the image. Where its so important in my style of wildlife photography to capture the wild animal, within their natural environment and showing how they live, breed and go about their lives, their behaviours and so on.
The stand and my images went down really well I feel. I managed to sell some of my Limited Edition Tiger images, which was great, with the cheque having been sent this morning to 21st Century Tiger Charity where I am trying to help in anyway I can towards the survival of the wild Tiger throughout the world, so thank you on behalf of the Tiger for the sales.
I met so many very nice people and made some many good contacts, so a big thank you to all those that came to see me. There were many people from the various different forums I am on, Facebook, Flickr, Twitter etc, where it was great to put a face to the name. I have a few ideas I will be working on alongside my current ventures. I will be field testing a range of brilliant products and equipment from Stealth Wildlife after meeting up and getting on great with their owner Neill.
I will be trying to give him a different customer perspective on an already great range of products from a ex-sniper’s, fieldcraft experts point of view eg-shape, shine, silhouette, toughness, durability, camouflage pattern etc so I’m really looking forward to promoting and adding value to Neill’s products. The first one will be very soon on his Bag Hide I will be using this on a Kingfisher project that I have been working on from scratch on the river Trent for the past three weeks. This part of the river runs through the beautiful Trentham Estate, a place I’ve known from my childhood.
With the help of Jack the head warden from the Deer Study Resource Centre who has shown me around this brilliant estate. I will be running Wildlife One-day Workshops, set in these amazing grounds, where they have a healthy population of Fallow deer, Badger, Fox and Kingfishers that have never been photographed before due to the privateness of this beautiful area.
We are just finalising this great event where I will show and teach everything I use to produce the images, I get from the wild, with the key focus on fieldcraft, tracking skills,approaching your subject with minimal disturbance,wind direction, all designed for you to read whats happening around you and help you to build a picture of the wildlife in the area. Pool these skills together with the simply composition and camera skills, I will show and teach and you all the ingredients for a great day and in turn improving your wildlife photography skills and competancies throughout these one day workshops.
The day will include hot or cold lunch, drinks and refreshments and will last all day. More details will follow and I will keep you updated. Should you want more details in the mean time then please send me an email here or contact Jack at the Deer Study & Resource Center. With the start of the Rutting season soon these days will be up and running to coincide with this amazing time, capturing the stunning autumn colours of this beautiful countryside.
Just to say thanks again folks to those I met, many thanks for your trade and bookings on my One To Ones/Workshops and I look forward to meeting you all in the future, many thanks.
Giving something back to nature is something that is very high on my agenda.Being a Wildlife Photographer,with a great passion for wildlife you have a duty to capture the beauty of the animal I feel to show others and this is the foundation to my work. I am pleased to say I am working with dakini Year Of The Tiger 2010 campaign.
dakini Books is an innovative London-based media company with a reputation based on creativity, originality and excellence. dakini’s not-for-profit company is now launching a major international campaign to help save the tiger from extinction. You can donate now to support the campaign here or join the campaign’s facebook group; Tigers
There will be two images from my Year Of The Tiger 2010 collection that will be exclusively sold by dakini- Year Of The Tiger 2010 campaign here is dakini .More details soon as their website is almost ready and their launch in London is soon where I will be attending with the two images I have donated to this project where 50% the profit from each sale goes to helping Tigers. I will keep you updated on their website,the launch and timing.I have been in talks with Lindsey for the last 8 days and things are almost ready fingers crossed.
The two images are Lady Of The Lake-A female Tigress that wonders around the different zones in Ranthambore,with no clear territory of her own as of yet,so is mostly seen around one of the beautiful lakes in Ranthambore hence her name.
The second image is called Machali Standing Proud- Its a photo of the Queen of Ranthambore,she is now 13 and mother to many of the cubs born there over the years.I spent 4 days looking for her with my guide Salim,hoping to see this famous Tigress and on the last day I spent nearly 30 minutes with her as she drink,washed and relaxed in an almost dry waterhole.This image is of her standing up from this riverbed.So there are the two images with only 100 copies.
dakini are bringing out an amazing book called Tigers,where you can pre-order at copy on the site where the money raised from this book and other projects,images etc will go towards helping the Tigers –Blog .So I’ll keep you posted on the details in the mean time visit their different sites on Twitter, Facebook And see if you can donate or help in anyway th helping this campaign then that would be great.I will update my blog letting you know when the launch in central London of the book,images etc is.I was asked to give a few words on what wildlife photography meant to me,the Tigers etc and below is hopefully a good account of how,where my amazing passion for wildlife started and the Tigers showing where my strong foundation and geniue love for nature and photography began.
“My journey to become a wildlife photographer was born out of a love and fascination of the natural world from a young age upon receiving my first Wildlife book called Animal World. This was an 8th birthday present from my Mum and started my love and fascination for the natural world. The front cover had a roaring Tiger picture which had such a powerful effect on me as a youngster, where I made this my personal dream to see this amazingly beautiful animal one day.
From those early days I spent so much time being at one with nature, close to and watching, hidden from view on the off chance I would see a certain animal. I distanced myself from children’s games and activities instead heading to a nearby stretch of wilderness within the mass housing estate I grew up in. Learning to get close without disturbing the animal almost forgetting the outside world and becoming part of the animal I was getting close to or watching. By doing this I could understand the animal better and this is still one of the main skills I use within wildlife photography today, one which in the absence of any real training in photography has enabled me to get close enough to capture the animals beauty with the images I frame through my view finder, where my creative and emotional attachment to nature is at the very heart of each photo, creating a unique and artistic refection of my time in the field. It is my intention to use these reflections of the natural world to bring people’s awareness of what beautiful wildlife we have on our doorstep and all around us and the importance of conservation and the need to preserve our national heritage.
This year my dream of seeing a wild Tiger was realised and the whole experience was one of the most beautiful times I have had in my 30 years of being at one with nature.
In the famous ‘Jungle Book’ Rudyard Kipling acknowledged the undisputed status of the mighty Bengal Tiger by introducing Shere Khan as the King of the Beasts. Although the cat family includes many impressive and attractive animals, there is an aura of power and majesty about the Tiger, where observing a male Tiger patrolling his territory in an Indian Reserve is to watch an unchallenged ruler strolling through his domain. Unfortunately for the Tiger, being the top predator has no protection against the activities of man, and a combination of habitat destruction and hunting pressures have reduced the Indian population from an estimated 40,000 to less than 1500.
Just setting off in search of a Tiger during my recent trip sent adrenalin coursing through my veins, whilst every movement in the undergrowth raises the expectation of a sudden appearance of this animal, striped body, footprints in the dust or the warning cries of deer all serving only to heighten the almost unbearable sense of excitement as you watch and listen for the first clue that a Tiger is around you. Upon seeing this animal for the first time Mother Nature made so beautiful, it renders you speechless.
After seeing these creatures in the wild for the first time in 2010, ‘The Year of the Tiger’ at Ranthambore, India, I wanted to do something to help these amazing animals. I was greatly moved by their beauty and character, with an aura of power and majesty when you see them patrolling their territory. The tigers whole existence in our world today is down to humans, with the real threat of Wild Tigers being extinct ever present, so after seeing these animals in the wild, doing nothing is just not an option for me.
I was empowered and moved by my visit to Ranthambore to do something to help, so by offering these Limited Editions prints where 50% of the profits from each image sold will go direct to helping these beautiful creatures survive in the wild. In turn I am hopefully helping to preserve them for future generations.
I am going back very soon and then next May 2011 I will be running my own Photo-Tour where I have an acute interest in conservation and the need to ensure the long-term protection of species and habitats being such an important part of my life. By staying and visiting the national park and wildlife regions on my Photo-Tour, we will be actively contributing and supporting a beautiful and locally-owned lodge/hotel, employing local people, local guides and other staff who have grown up in this region. With our preference for local naturalists rather than imported guides, being the key to a successful trip. Also ensuring employment opportunities to local communities, so important in developing the local areas, the perfect recipe for the survival of the Bengal Tiger! This kind of wildlife tourism supports rural communities in impoverished areas and supports them and their ability to preserve their natural and wildlife heritage for their future generations.
Being a Wildlife photographer I can now help to show others the beauty of these animals and hopefully raise awareness through my images and work that hopefully will help to keep these animals alive”.
The story continues…..
Many Thanks
