I don't post on here very often, but I thought i'd share some photos taken at the Monkey Forest in Trentham near Stoke. It's a relatively new place, so most people probably haven't heard of it, but if you are within driving distance i'd recommend a visit if you want some 'exotic' wildlife shots outside of the confines of a Zoo. They keep everything as close as possible to their natural habitat, and they've even released about 600 back into the wild.
Basically the place consists of a large forest (strangely enough!), a winding path through it, and 140 free roaming monkeys. They have areas you aren't allowed to go into, indicated by fences a foot or so high, but the monkeys are free to do as they please, and come within a foot or so of you if they're in the mood.
They're all the same type of monkey, so it's not exactly varied, but it's a nice setting for taking photographs. I managed with my 24-70, but I could have taken a few more shots with a slightly longer lens. I had to shoot at ISO 200 to keep the shutter speeds up because the little fellas move so damn quickly it's hard to get rid of the motion blur completely. It really makes me appreciate how good 'proper' wildlife photographers are at knowing their quarry so they can anticipate the movement.
Anyway, a few of the photos are below, the rest are at http://www.zen48266.zen.co.uk/images/monkeyforest/ if anyone is interested.
Basically the place consists of a large forest (strangely enough!), a winding path through it, and 140 free roaming monkeys. They have areas you aren't allowed to go into, indicated by fences a foot or so high, but the monkeys are free to do as they please, and come within a foot or so of you if they're in the mood.
They're all the same type of monkey, so it's not exactly varied, but it's a nice setting for taking photographs. I managed with my 24-70, but I could have taken a few more shots with a slightly longer lens. I had to shoot at ISO 200 to keep the shutter speeds up because the little fellas move so damn quickly it's hard to get rid of the motion blur completely. It really makes me appreciate how good 'proper' wildlife photographers are at knowing their quarry so they can anticipate the movement.
Anyway, a few of the photos are below, the rest are at http://www.zen48266.zen.co.uk/images/monkeyforest/ if anyone is interested.
will my 70-200f4 be any good here?