The other day I was forcing myself to spend some time doing a photographer’s least favourite task – admin!
While tidying up some files on my PC I came across some video files I’d shot back in October 2011. The footage was of Fallow Deer taken while I was photographing them during their annual rutting season. One morning I’d set up my hide in a promising location, but exciting stills photography was being hampered by rubbish, dull light so to make the best of the situation I decided to test out the video capabilities of my Nikon D7000.
One of the dangers of filming or shooting stills without a specific purpose is that it’s easy to come home and forget what you did! So it was in this case and the clips I shot that morning remained in a folder unviewed. But when I found them again the other day one short sequence made me smile so I thought I’d dust it off and share it with you.
This shows two young fallow deer enjoying some playtime. The rut is a time when deer compete for the attention of females. For the big males these are serious battles but even youngsters get in on the act for practice!
If you’d like to experience this for yourself and learn more about wildlife photography then why not join me for one of my Wildlife of the New Forest photography workshops. A day of one to one tuition on a bespoke course is a great way to learn more about the New Forest, its wildlife and how to observe and record it. If you’d like to know more about it then do get in touch via the “Contact Me” form at the bottom of the page.
This is the third of four articles on my travels in Cuba in November 2011. You can read my thoughts on Havana in part one here and the swamps of Cienaga de Zapata National Park in part two here.
If I’m honest, large parts of central Cuba aren’t all that scenic. From Havana, the Autopista (motorway) rolls for many miles across flat terrain, with little in the way of interesting views. Turning off towards the coastal town of Cienfuegos things start to get a bit more interesting but you’ll find your view often obscured by the fields of tall sugarcane on each side that provide one of Cuba’s chief export products.
Leaving Cienfuegos, the road begins to follow the coast en route to Trinidad and ahead looms a dramatic change in topography, the Sierra del Escambray mountains. They dominate the next 50 miles of coastline, with the western end partly designated as the Topes de Collantes National Park. More on this area in a bit!
I have a controversial revelation about our first port of call: All guide books sing the praises of the “charming little town ” of Trinidad, a UNESCO World Heritage area no less. Personally I couldn’t abide the place, undoubtedly my least favourite in Cuba, with the hassle afforded to Westerners exceeding what I had experienced even in Havana. Perhaps I had enjoyed the rural quiet of a few days in the Zapata Swamp too much and was under-prepared for a return to touristy areas, but I found it all incredibly tiresome and within a couple of hours of arrving promptly got the hell out of town as fast as possible. Fortunately salvation was at hand nearby in a charming casa particular in the little fishing village of La Boca.
La Boca gave us the perfect base to explore the Ancon Peninsula and take a trip to one of the offshore cayos dotted in the Bahia de Casilda. This is of course Cuba’s Caribbean Sea coastline, a different experience to the Atlantic coast in the north. The cayos, tiny outposts of sand and rock surrounded by lovely coral reefs, are the last refuge for one of of Cuba’s most endangered reptiles, the Cuban Iguana (Cyclura nubila) . The Marlin Marina at the end of the Ancon peninsula was the starting point the next day to head out on a catamaran in perfect conditions for Cayo Blanco, a small rocky island lying about 5 miles offshore.
On arriving at Cayo Blanco the first wildlife in evidence were Caribbean Hermit Crabs.. lots of them! The few hundred I saw were nothing though.. for in this area every March a truly astonishing wildlife spectacle takes place as millions of land crabs pour out of the coastal forests for the sea, covering every inch of the land with a moving blanket of the small crustaceans and causing chaos on the coastal roads.
There was also plenty of coastal bird life to be seen, with a female Magnificent Frigatebird gliding overhead and a number of large Double-Crested Cormorants dotted around rocky outcrops in the bay.
I was beginning to fear that that I would miss out on a sighting of the iguanas but a pair of adults eventually appeared from the tangled vegetation of the island’s interior onto the edge of the beach. They are quite a large species but quite cautious of humans, I carefully tested their “circle of fear” and they weren’t comfortable with being approached closer than about 25 feet so I maintained a respectful distance to ensure they would tolerate me.
These iguanas are classified as vulnerable by the IUCN Redlist and these uninhabited cayos provide a refuge, but they are land iguanas, they don’t swim so ultimately they will need to recover numbers on the mainland for the population to grow. It’s always an absolute privilege to spend time observing threatened species in the wild, I often feel a palpable sense of what it would mean to lose the animal I see in front of me from our planet and the Cuban Iguana is definitely a species I hope can be helped to recover.
On arriving back on the mainland some local fisherman were landing their day’s catch, their rather shabby boat made a bit of a contrast next to our immaculate catamaran!
The next day it was time to pack up and head north over the Escambray mountains towards the Atlantic coast. I’d been advised not to drive the mountain road, but as long as you have a reliable car then you should! It is very steep and bumpy in places so expect to do parts in 1st gear and watch out for lorries on the tight switchback turns but it’s a fascinating area and the route north through Jibacoa and on to Manicaragua feels like the “real Cuba” with no tourist trappings whatsoever. Coming across some local cowboys and their herd blocking the road gave me one last photo opportunity before we left the region for the north coast.
Entering Cuba’s Cienaga de Zapata National Park does feel like an adventure. In planning any trip to Cuba you can read endless travel blogs or guidebooks about Havana or Vinales, but things get altogether sketchier when dealing with one of Cuba’s wildest areas.
There’s a good reason for that, the Zapata Peninsula does not give up its secrets easily. The protected wetland area (a designated Ramsar site since 2001) is the largest anywhere in the Caribbean, covering over one million acres (4,000 km²). A mixture of open grasslands, coastal forest and mangrove swamp, there is hardly any road access and even channels navigable by boat are limited. The good news is that the lack of human encroachment has preserved an area teeming with wildlife, including a large number of rare endemic species… if you can find them! For birdlife it’s undoubtedly one of the most spectacular places I’ve ever visited.
I can almost guarantee there is one species you sadly won’t see in the wild, the area’s top predators, the Cuban Crocodile and its close cousin the American Crocodile. Captive crocs can be seen at a croc farm on the road to Playa Larga, one of the area’s prime tourist spots, but I stayed away from it after seeing YouTube videos showing clear mistreatment of the animals. Despite talking to many local people I could find no way to penetrate deep enough into the swamp to find them, nor anyone foolhardy enough to guide me there. “You crazy, too dangerous, el cocodrilo very aggressive” was said to me on more than one occasion, so maybe it’s just as well I failed! Instead I concentrated on two specific areas of the National Park offering very different environments and lots of wildlife photography opportunities.
Rio Hatiguanico
One of the few ways of getting into the heart of the huge mangrove swamp areas in the west of the park is by boat down the Rio Hatiguanico, the so-called “Cuban Amazon”.
Guides can be booked at the Cubanacan desk at the La Finquita snack bar which is on the Autopista just by the turn off for the road to Playa Larga. Access to the departure point is actually back along the Autopista about 25 kms towards Havana, then turning off for about 7kms down a dirt road that will test out your car’s tyres and suspension nicely! Keep any eye out down this road, I got some nice shots of Turkey Vulture and American Kestrel en route.
The jetty area is safe to park and in no time you’ll be crusing down the arrow-straight river into the western part of the swamp. I put together a short video of part of the journey together with some images of the wildlife we encountered, including turtles, several types of heron, and many smaller bird species such as Flycatchers.
The broad river narrows as you travel through sections of the river filled with large, jumping Tarpon, a game fish popular with visiting fishermen. Eventually we headed down a small side channel and tied the boat up against the bank allowing us to jump out and experience the immediate area on foot. The tangled terrain and enormous number of mosquitos mean any serious progress is a challenging undertaking so we contented ourselves with a check of the immediate area. To my delight this yielded the discovery of a Cuban Boa Constrictor. It had its head stuck down a hole in the riverbank and I had no desire to interfere with it so took a quick record shot, watched it for a few minutes and then backed off.
Our journey back up the river was more rapid as the afternoon was wearing on, but the rush of cool air was very welcome on a day when the temperature was hovering around the 30ºC mark and humidity was high!
Las Salinas
To my mind the jewel in the Zapata crown is the coastal saltflat lagoon area of Las Salinas. It lies to the south of Playa Larga on the western flank of the famous Bay of Pigs. It’s a mecca for large numbers of wading birds and many bird of prey species too.
A long straight (bumpy) road bisects the area and you will soon emerge from scrub forest into wide lagoon areas studded with mangrove. Be aware you must have an EMA guide to access the road to Las Salinas, it is guarded and you can’t just drive yourself into the area without one. I’ve never seen so many species of waders in close proximity from herons to flamingos, pelicans to spoonbills and egrets there is something to see in every direction!
The raptors are also spectacular, Ospreys are a common sight (my guide told me he had seen up to 12 individuals fishing in one morning!) and we also saw Northern Harrier, American Kestrel and the endemic Cuban Black Hawk as well as the usual copious numbers of Turkey Vulture.
At a couple of points along the road, large viewing platforms have been constructed. These give a great view across the landscape, but do not have hides. Nevertheless it’s a beautiful area with a real treasure trove of species and I feel very lucky to have spent time there.
Top tips for visiting the Zapata Swamp
Take plenty of mosquito repellent, you’re going to need it!
My favourite accomodation is Bohio Don Pedro, a small complex of lovely rural thatched cottages in a quiet area near the village of Australia not far from the Autopista. Alternatively there are hotels and casas in Playa Larga.
Allow at least 2 full days on the peninsula to visit the various areas (committed birders could easily spend a week!)
If you are self-driving rather than being part of an organised tour, visit the EMA (Empresa Municipal de la Agricultura) office in Playa Larga to hire guides, the guys there are great. It’s on the right-hand side of the road in Playa Larga just before you reach the obvious fork in the road. A 3 – 4 hour trip to Las Salinas is around 20CUC per person. You will need to drive the guide in your car. Make sure you tip them well, they deserve it!
If you plan to visit Las Salinas, go early in the day for most bird activity, especially to see Osprey fishing. To see the largest concentrations of American Flamingos visit in January/February when up to 10,000 individuals are present.
When so much of the world is becoming increasingly homogenised, it’s nice to know that unique cities like Havana still exist. Spending time there can be frustrating on occasion and almost always contradictory but it delivers an experience unlike any other. How can I put this…
Havana is like a crazy movie studio backlot. In one part they are filming a new version of Evita and have constructed streets where the buildings have beautiful facades in a mix of late 19th century Spanish and early 20th century art deco styles. Just walking along them transports you back to Havana’s glory days in the 1920s and makes you feel a little bit like Cary Grant or David Niven, you just slipped back into a more refined and genteel age.
On other streets they are filming Mad Max 4. Buildings are ravaged, chunks of masonry lie in rubbish-strewn streets and smoke billows from random doorways. Grizzled amputees and blind beggars compete for your attention and a peso or two. Vultures cruise overhead thriving amongst easy pickings in the detritus below.
Throw in a selection of 1950s American Fords and Oldsmobiles cruising the streets (themselves in a variety of states from pristine to utterly ramshackle) and you can see why Havana is a heady mix of vibrancy, decay, fun and the occasional undercurrent of something a little more menacing.
That “edge” to the city doesn’t mean people should be fearful of Havana, it just keeps things interesting! I had no bad experiences and it’s much, much safer than other cities in the Caribbean (Kingston springs to mind as one that is not). Yes, you will be hassled by a variety of street vendors, touts and beggars, especially in the middle of the day, but not aggressively. This is a game the locals play every day and they know its not in their interests to draw the attention of the police who maintain a visible presence in tourist areas.
Five things you should do in Havana
For me, Havana is at its best at dawn and dusk. At these times the coach parties of aging European tourists are absent, the jineteros (local touts) are not lying in wait in large numbers and the city can be savoured as people start or finish going about their day.
Vist the Museo del Chocolate early while the day is still cool and the place isn’t packed with tourists. This small cafe / chocolate shop / museum serves the richest hot chocolate I’ve ever tasted!
During the middle of the day escape to the 6th floor roof bar of the Ambos Mundos Hotel on Mercaderes Street. Here you can relax with a mojito while enjoying spectacular views of the old quarter (and drinks prices are thankfully no worse than anywhere else!)
Browse the book market in the Plaza de Armas. This is something of a fixture, happening 6 days a week and containing a vast amount of unusual texts about the history of Cuba and the Revolution that you won’t find anywhere else. The vendors are pretty friendly and not too pushy if you just want to browse for a while.
Enjoy dinner at La Imprenta. My favourite restaurant in Havana, based in a building that formerly housed a printing press and retains the theme with seats carved in the shape of letters. Lovely staff, good food and a very pretty setting partially open to the warm Caribbean night. A German chap sat near me remarked to friends “This could be Verona”. Enough said!
Just walk and talk! A lot of Havana’s museums and “cultural attractions” are a little underwhelming, for me the joy was just rambling and exploring. From chatting to a sculptor in his tiny shop (also his front room) to finding leafy little plazas tucked away in corners of the city, take advantage of the fact that Old Havana is compact and friendly to pedestrians.
After a wonderfully lazy family Christmas and New Year I was feeling a distinct need to have a camera in my hands again. So on the 2nd January, with blue skies overhead for the first time in several days, I made the short hop from my home over to The Hawk Conservancy Trust, to check out their winter display programme.
I have some bookings coming up for my Bird of Prey Photography Workshop so I wanted to just get a feel for the contents of the winter display so I can make the workshop days as good as possible for my clients. I’ve been coming to the Trust since 1980 so I know it pretty well, but the programme is varied quite often so it always pays to be prepared! These days I only ever photograph captive wildlife when I’m running a workshop, which is about someone else’s photography not mine, so this was also just a rare chance to shoot for fun with no expectations. Here are a few images from the day, if you love birds of prey and would like to take photos like this why not join me for a workshop day sometime in 2012?
Snowy Owl takes to the air
Mobbed! – Wild Red Kite harassed by crows
Black Kite in flight
Golden Eagle portrait
Eurasian Eagle Owl in flight
Saker Falcon turns in mid-air in pursuit of the falconer’s lure
It’s that time of year when every photographer takes stock of the year that has just passed. It never fails to surprise me just how quickly I forget what I’ve shot more than 6 months ago so the exercise of writing this post always springs a few surprises as I re-discover photos I’d forgotten!
This time last year I was still settling into a return to country life after a few years of urban & suburban living. I’ve found being back closer to nature and wildlife an absolute joy, so my first image of the year celebrates that and sums up how much I love being out and about near my home in the Hampshire countryside.
My first photography trip of the year came in April, a week spent in the far north of Scotland in my favourite areas of Wester Ross and Sutherland. When I was previously there in 2009 I fell in love with the stark beauty of places like Ardvreck Castle. Unfortunately on that trip bad weather stopped me from making the image I wanted, but this time the sun shone and I came away with an image of spring in the Highlands that I was very happy with.
The early part of the summer was spent back in Hampshire on local wildlife subjects.
Wading birds are always a favourite subject of mine and this image of a Little Egret “Poised to Strike” shot at the Lower Test Nature Reserve on the outskirts of Southampton was my favourite from this period.
In mid-summer I had a really fun day out at Marwell Wildlife with fellow photographers Jon Griffiths and Scott Fisher. It yielded one of my best conservation images of the year of an Amur Leopard stalking towards the camera.
In the late part of the summer I headed down to Cornwall and made my favourite new discovery of the year: Golitha Falls National Nature Reserve. I loved scrambling around this beautiful river valley and will hopefully be back in 2012.
While I was in Cornwall I also visited the Tamar Otter Centre to find out about their conservation work and had great fun photographing their European otters and this Asian Short-Clawed.
As usual I spent the autumn working on one of my favourite British wildlife subjects, deer, during the annual rutting season.
Tracking the declining herds of Red Deer around the vast area of the New Forest is always a challenge, but I enjoyed some great early morning encounters.
As the year came to a close I set off on my most exciting project of the year, a 12 day trip to experience the landscapes and wildlife of Cuba. I failed to sight Cuban Crocodiles in the wild, but managed to find plenty of other reptiles and a plethora of bird life including some rare endemic species. Cuban Iguanas up close were a big highlight!
I also found great photographic inspiration while spending time in Havana, a unique city which left a lasting impression on me. In truth my personal favourite image of the year wasn’t even of wildlife, it was this street scene from a run-down side street in Old Havana.
As much as it’s fun to be away in exotic locations, coming home to friends and family is just as good and as I write this, having just enjoyed a lovely family Christmas at home, I’ll finish off with my favourite portrait image of the year, my daughter, growing up just so fast now!
It just remains to wish everyone a very Happy New Year and to say a big thank you to everyone who I’ve worked with, been advised by, or just had great laughs with in 2011. As always with me, looking back in review doesn’t last long, the plans for 2012 blog post is coming soon…
I’ve been back from Cuba for 5 days and now the jetlag has worn off I thought I’d post my initial thoughts and an overview of the environments and wildlife I found. This will be the first in a series of articles to hopefully bring you a flavour of the natural wonders of Cuba.
My overall impression of Cuba is one of a land of amazing contrasts. There are the stereotypical ones of a Communist country filled with classic American cars and a capital city, Havana, where a great many people live in glorious colonial buildings, 45% of which are deemed unfit for human habitation. There are many natural constrasts too. Within central Cuba there are vibrant coastal marine ecosystems, one of the largest wetlands in the Americas, the Sierra Escambray mountain range and large flat fertile areas, where wildlife and human homes and farms co-exist.
My journey concentrated on 3 areas. The Cienaga de Zapata National Park, where I failed in my efforts to glimpse the rare Cuban Crocodile, but encountered the Cuban Boa Constrictor as well as an unbelieveable array of wading birds and raptors in the salt marshes of Las Salinas. Great Blue Heron, Osprey, Great Egret, Northern Harrier, Greater Flamingo, Cuban Black Hawk, Green Heron and American Kestrel were just some of the species seen.
I then explored the south coast down to the Ancon Peninsula, heading offshore to the island of Cayo Blanco where I was able to spend time photographing Cuban Iguanas and Caribbean Hermit Crabs as well as marine birds like the Double-Crested Cormorant and the Magnificent Frigatebird.
The final leg took me from the Caribbean Sea north through the mountainous Topes de Collantes National Park to the Atlantic Ocean, spending 3 days in the mangrove-infested northern cayos 20 kms from the mainland, where I photographed large numbers of flycatchers and warblers as well as raptors like the Crested Caracara & Turkey Vulture and rare endemic species like the Cuban Green Woodpecker.
12 days, just over 1000 images and about 10,000 mosquito and sandfly bites later… I’m finally home having enjoyed one of the most productive trips in recent memory. I look forward to bring you an in-depth look at Cuba’s natural history just as soon as I’ve finished my mountain of photo processing!
Inside Dimensions (LxWxH mm): 320 x 160 x 270 Outside Dimensions (LxWxH mm): 370 x 360 x 560 Weight (g): 2750 Exterior Fabric: 1000*1200D Polyester + 1000*1000D Polyester ripstop + 600D Polyester ripstop Interior Fabric: 210D Nylon + Velvet Capacity: 1-2 Pro DSLRs with attached lens ( up to 70-200mm f/2.8), 3-4 extra lenses, a flash unit and accessories (memory cards, cables, battery and charger) plus a laptop up to 15″
VIDEO REVIEW
There’s only so much I can tell you in text and still images so for an in-depth look at the bag inside and out click below to watch my video review.
IN SUMMARY
The Skyborne 51 is a very impressive offering, with flexibility its key strength. This is a bag that will work for you hiking in a wilderness environment but be just as useful on a weekend citybreak. It’s also been designed and manufactured with superb attention to detail and quality as the highest priority. As with any product that attempts to appeal in so many ways there are some restrictions with specialist equipment. Here’s a breakdown of my key considerations:
Superbly comfortable for long hikes with excellent design of shoulder straps and sensible weight distribution
Adaptable internal space allows the user lots of options
Too large to use as hand luggage on budget airlines
Not designed to accomodate large super-telephoto lenses attached to camera body
PRICING & RETAILERS
To find your nearest retailer for Vanguard products, click here.
WIN A SKYBORNE 51 BACKPACK
Vanguard are running a sweepstake until 4th November 2011 to win a Skyborne 51 backpack so to win yourself one head over to the Vanguard UK Facebook page
The first WildlifeXpo event took place last Saturday at Alexandra Palace in London. The main hall featured a mix of exhibitors involved in wildlife tourism, conservation, art and photography.
There were also a series of lectures and presentations from the likes of Matthias Hammer, Chris Packham, David Shepherd, Nick Baker, Andy Rouse and many more. It was certainly an impressive list of speakers to assemble under one roof over the course of the weekend.
For me the event was a chance to meet people in person who I’ve only ever chatted via Twitter, get new inspiration for future photography projects and find out more about the work of lots of wildlife conservation organisations.
A definite highlight was meeting up with my good Twitter buddy David Lloyd who was exhibiting his outstanding portfolio of African wildlife photography. It was great to see up close some of his images that I’ve only ever seen on the web. That’s the beauty of these kind of events, being able to experience people’s work in a way you never can by visiting a website.
One exhibiting conservation project also stood out for me, The Gerry Martin Project. It’s chief aim is conservation of wildlife species in India, a country with many wonderful species but one that faces unprecedented pressures due to an explosion in population growth and the associated need for increased farming. This brings people into conflict with wildlife in many ways. As well as the continuing decline of iconic species such as the tiger, it also exposes people to dangers, especially with snakes.
A few months ago I saw a powerful documentary on snakes in India, One Million Snake Bites, featuring the work on anti-venom research of legendary herpetologist Romulus Whitaker. The statistic is true, 1 million people are bitten by snakes in India every year leading to over 40,000 fatalities.
I discovered that the Gerry Martin project is running trips to observe (and get involved in) this research as well as studies into crocodiles and other species. Some of them even stay at Rom Whitaker’s house! For me this goes beyond “eco-tourism” to the heart of my passion for wildlife photography, the chance to be directly involved in wildlife studies and make a contribution. It has fired my imagination to be part of this work and document its progress. Expect to hear more from me on this in 2012, it’s something I really want to be involved with.
You can see the full list of exhibitors and lectures plus get news on the 2012 event on the WildlifeXpo website
If you’re a regular visitor to this site, you’ve probably just noticed a big change!
If you’re just discovering my images for the first time, welcome!
This morning I’ve launched this brand new version of my portfolio and blog website, which will hopefully act as an even better showcase of my work and the stories I’m trying to tell.
Some of the improvements to look out for are:
Simpler, cleaner layout with some big examples of my work to view on the homepage.
New blog layout with a monthly posts archive
Full site search function
Categorised portfolio allowing you to browse my favourite images easily at a glance.
Social media links to connect with me on your favourite web platform
There are one or two more tricks that this site can do that I haven’t revealed yet, so stop by regularly for new updates and features or sign up for the e-newsletter to find out what’s coming next!
I can almost guarantee there is one species you sadly won’t see in the wild, the area’s top predators, the Cuban Crocodile and its close cousin the American Crocodile. Captive crocs can be seen at a croc farm on the road to Playa Larga, one of the area’s prime tourist spots, but I stayed away from it after seeing YouTube videos showing clear mistreatment of the animals. Despite talking to many local people I could find no way to penetrate deep enough into the swamp to find them, nor anyone foolhardy enough to guide me there. “You crazy, too dangerous, el cocodrilo very aggressive” was said to me on more than one occasion, so maybe it’s just as well I failed! Instead I concentrated on two specific areas of the National Park offering very different environments and lots of wildlife photography opportunities.
The jetty area is safe to park and in no time you’ll be crusing down the arrow-straight river into the western part of the swamp. I put together a short video of part of the journey together with some images of the wildlife we encountered, including turtles, several types of heron, and many smaller bird species such as Flycatchers.
The tangled terrain and enormous number of mosquitos mean any serious progress is a challenging undertaking so we contented ourselves with a check of the immediate area. To my delight this yielded the discovery of a Cuban Boa Constrictor. It had its head stuck down a hole in the riverbank and I had no desire to interfere with it so took a quick record shot, watched it for a few minutes and then backed off.
That “edge” to the city doesn’t mean people should be fearful of Havana, it just keeps things interesting! I had no bad experiences and it’s much, much safer than other cities in the Caribbean (Kingston springs to mind as one that is not). Yes, you will be hassled by a variety of street vendors, touts and beggars, especially in the middle of the day, but not aggressively. This is a game the locals play every day and they know its not in their interests to draw the attention of the police who maintain a visible presence in tourist areas.
Vist the Museo del Chocolate early while the day is still cool and the place isn’t packed with tourists. This small cafe / chocolate shop / museum serves the richest hot chocolate I’ve ever tasted!
Enjoy dinner at La Imprenta. My favourite restaurant in Havana, based in a building that formerly housed a printing press and retains the theme with seats carved in the shape of letters. Lovely staff, good food and a very pretty setting partially open to the warm Caribbean night. A German chap sat near me remarked to friends “This could be Verona”. Enough said!
The early part of the summer was spent back in Hampshire on local wildlife subjects.
In mid-summer I had a really fun day out at Marwell Wildlife with fellow photographers Jon Griffiths and Scott Fisher. It yielded one of my best conservation images of the year of an Amur Leopard stalking towards the camera.
In the late part of the summer I headed down to Cornwall and made my favourite new discovery of the year: Golitha Falls National Nature Reserve. I loved scrambling around this beautiful river valley and will hopefully be back in 2012.
As usual I spent the autumn working on one of my favourite British wildlife subjects, deer, during the annual rutting season.
As the year came to a close I set off on my most exciting project of the year, a 12 day trip to experience the landscapes and wildlife of Cuba. I failed to sight Cuban Crocodiles in the wild, but managed to find plenty of other reptiles and a plethora of bird life including some rare endemic species. Cuban Iguanas up close were a big highlight!
For nature photographers one of the most important pieces of equipment we own is the one that transports all the others, our camera bag.
The first WildlifeXpo event took place last Saturday at Alexandra Palace in London. The main hall featured a mix of exhibitors involved in wildlife tourism, conservation, art and photography.
A definite highlight was meeting up with my good Twitter buddy David Lloyd who was exhibiting his