Posts Tagged "wildlife"

Here is how we got to get all these pictures: Triple D Game Farm Stephen Oachs (link), Scott Bourne, National Geographic, Discovery Channel, they all know about Triple D Game Farm. Scott Bourne wrote in his book that he discovered Triple D Game Farm in the mid-80s! Part 1 and part 2 showed you some of the animals and the great pictures you can take at Triple D, but this post will explain how it works. Each day starts the same way, you meet at the Triple D ranch, you have coffee and pastry and look at the board. Depending of the weather, lights and the animals, Triple D lists what species you will be able to photograph that day. They choose the location, based on the size of the animals (a mountain lion needs a bigger space than a fox). Triple D rents sites...

The second part of the series is going to focus on the “big cats” (and some horses) [link to part 1]. We were lucky and we got to photograph a mountain lion, a snow leopard and my favorite: the amur leopard. The mountain lion (a.k.a. cougar or puma) is a big cat. Its thinner profile makes it a very dangerous predator. The snow leopard (Panthera uncia or Uncia uncia) is a beautiful animal. The total estimated population is 4,080–6,590. It  is classified as globally Endangered (EN) on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. The Amur leopard (Panthera pardus orientalis) is extremely rare, the last data I could find states that only 14–20 adults and 5–6 cubs were counted in a census in 2007 [link]. It is classified as Critically...

My wife and I went to Kalispell, MT in the middle of the Winter. The only reason I could convince my wife to spend about a week in Montana in Winter  where highs never really got over 22F/-6C, was a chance to watch and take pictures of “winter cats” (lynx, bobcat). But in addition to the cats, we had the opportunity to see a coyote, a few wolves, and a few foxes. Let’s focus on the “smaller cats” first. We got to watch a Canadian Lynx and a Canadian Lynx kitten. They were  really cute with their furry tufts on their ears, their long legs and wide paws. The kitten’s paws were white, as if it was wearing mittens to walk in the snow. It was really hard not to try to take it home with us. Then we saw a feisty bobcat....

About a year ago, my wife and I joined David duChemin and Jeffrey Chapman’s workshop “Within The Frame” and went to Kenya to explore the Maasai Mara. It was my second organized trip where someone else was doing all the planning for me. The first one in Spitzbergen was not a success so I was unsure about what to expect. This time we were looking for an organized photo safari with a lot of freedom to take pictures of the wildlife, especially not being timed and be able to go early in the morning and late in the evening where most wildlife is visible. We were a bit overwhelmed by all the options available to visit the Maasai Mara and relying on guides like David and Jeffrey who have traveled to Kenya on numerous occasions seemed a smart...