Do I risk it?

Overread · Feb 21, 2009

6am start
2 hours and 30mins plus train travel
1 hour long walk (with main road thrown in)

on a day where the weather reports say that it could be cloudy???????????

Is it worth it?
should I try?
and the all important question - if I go will I even manage to get a better shot of Milo?

Antarctican · Feb 21, 2009

What else would you do?

Are there any penguins you could shoot, I mean photograph, instead?

Phranquey · Feb 21, 2009

For that.....Oh, Yeah. You know me, I am a bird fanatic. I'd be there.....with multiple memory cards & extra batteries.

Overread · Feb 21, 2009

what else?
well I guess I could update my blog more -- or walk up to the local woods and see if anything is growing (though I think it a bit early for garanteed results)

and nope no penguins - they ain't British see

many foxes and otters though!

Overread · Feb 21, 2009

right I risk it!
off to sleep then
here is to hoping that I get up at the right time!

mathogre · Feb 21, 2009

I recently went to a local botanical garden where it had snowed and had become icy. I couldn't enter the grounds. It didn't matter. That day walking around the perimeter I took what is now one of my favorite photographs.

Go. You'll never know what you'll see.

Overread · Feb 22, 2009

OK who suggested this was a good idea??

my back aches
my shoulders ache
my feet ache
I think I pulled some muscle in me leg (which ever one is on the insider of the upper part of the leg) getting some low angles
I have a wet foot - sock and shoe
my (rented) home has a leaky toilet and flooded kitchen (there are other that rent with me so I sort of left them with it a 6am - not that they were up

)
and I have invented new ways to torture and curse my batteries (seriously now I think I broke them somehow!)

*disclaimer - please give me a good 2 hours before I get round to shots

*
oh and it was cloudy too - well mostly -

oh and I met one of LP's Disciples too

Phranquey · Feb 22, 2009

Overread said:
OK who suggested this was a good idea??

Overread said:
*disclaimer - please give me a good 2 hours before I get round to shots *
oh and it was cloudy too - well mostly -

Hurry up, already. The pics are more important than the shower.....maybe.

Overread · Feb 22, 2009

Ok preliminary results of a major chimping session (me chimping whilst the cards write to computer) and I have this to say

"I LOVE backbutton focusing!"
that is all
oh wait and I have to now find out if the BWC foxes are not part cat - seriously I am tired after just reviewing the photos of them being sleeping and yawning!

Overread · Feb 22, 2009

well first off I failed with my Milo project

f4, ISO 400, 1/30sec
super large because I am half asleep and forgot a stage
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3566/3301061633_9057be0369_o.jpg

f4, ISO 200, 1/25sec (ok I could have gone more on the ISO on this one - but it was an early shot on the day (like I had just walked way too far and spent nearly 3 hours on the trains early

)
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3392/3301890262_267a350c07_o.jpg

sadly the indoors f4 was just not wide enough and I was too lazy to remove teleconverters for a wider aperture.

but project kestral worked rather well

f4.5, ISO 200, 1/125sec
link to larger: http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3621/3301116433_9390f8cde7_o.jpg

it was a cloudy day, but only moderate cloud so ISO 200 (with flash support) would work for much of it. I am a real hater of noise (and the grainy details destruction it leads to) so I am really risking it with my shutter speeds in the field - I also don't like stopping down to really wide apertures (losing my depth of field) so I am further shooting myself in the foot a bit there.
If I could just get ISO 800 as good as my ISO 200 I think I would be happy ( there no need for ISO 1000s more more - just 800

)
link to (normal) larger

Antarctican · Feb 23, 2009

Looks like Milo hadn't moved much since last time! That's one sleepy owl!

I like the kestrel shot very much

Phranquey · Feb 23, 2009

Nice. I like the Kestrel as well. Where are these taken?

Overread · Feb 23, 2009

British Wildlife Centre

oh and if you think Milo is sleepy you should have seen the foxes - one (LP which is the younger male still in residence?) didn't want to get up at all - all day - even when chicks were given for food!

a few shots:

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3585/3305101968_38385cac22_o.jpg
I am so annoyed that I lopped of the corner of one ear!

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3489/3304276135_325fd48df0_o.jpg

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3309/3305113896_8e26c54a36_o.jpg

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3515/3304280473_a7e83fc0ba_o.jpg

Phranquey · Feb 23, 2009

Overread said:
British Wildlife Centre

Is it a zoo or rehab for wild animals (or both)? I can't see an albino squirrel making it too long out in the wild, so I imagine they take care of animals like this permanently?

I really like the foxes...Nice. :thumbup:

ferny · Feb 24, 2009

Rather nice photos!

British Wildlife Centre, Surrey. More than forty different British wild animals in large attractive enclosures.

I might pop along one day. But as it's a couple of hours away I'll try and work it into a club event. So the only times I can do it would be the 7th April or some time in August - but that's a bit far off. What's the place like for people who just want to pop along for the day to take snaps? I'm guessing it's not huge. But what are the enclosure like? As in, is a 300mm a must and will fencing get in the way?