Weekly Photo Challenge: Wildlife

On By AngeliaIn Angelia's Photography, Beautiful Life, Posessed by Nikon

I spent Mother’s Day at the Fort Worth Zoo with my daughter.

It……….was………amazing (except for the blistering heat). Actually, the heat made the animal waterfalls very tempting (kidding – um, sorta).

The zoo was perfect for this challenge (and for my wildlife photography class).

I tried to take different angles and views. Truth is? I filled up 4GB memory card.

That was a first for me.

In my defense, I love animals. Growing up, my dad would send me magazines that I would read cover-to-cover about the animals in them. The beautiful pictures and articles let me share a passion with a dad that didn’t live with me (my parents divorced at three).

My biggest regret was not collecting his encyclopedia’s on animals when he passed away. Not for their value, but for the memories of looking at them with my dad.

So Dad, this is for you. You would have loved these animals and probably been able to tell me things about them not even the display would know.

Deer

Hawk

Hawk

Bald Eagle

Mountain Lion

Tiger

Cheetah

White Tiger

White Tiger in water

Meerkat

Zebra

Hippo

Giraffe

Gorilla

Alligator eye

Alligator

70's Parrot

I did sneak in a few pics from my earlier trip to the zoo. They were just too good not to share. The rest were taken on Sunday. I got a Tamron 70-300mm lens for Nikon. I did hand-hold all these shots and truthfully, I’m just not the steadiest of hands (you get the steadier ones). It will take some getting used to, but I was really happy with some of them, especially the Bald Eagle. I am fascinated by the iconic American symbol of strength.

I have another wildlife trip this weekend to Glenrose Fossil Rim Wildlife Center. The animals will be out (basically in a bigger cage) in a more roaming habitat.

I can’t wait!

Happy Wednesday! I hope we all roar into the weekend (heh!).

36 thoughts on “Weekly Photo Challenge: Wildlife”

  2. Momma Diddy

    I was so looking forward for this post as I happens to see your “@zoo status”. Wow, you really wow me with all these beautiful shots!

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  3. It looks like the hippo is actually out of the water?? I have been to the Fort Worth Zoo so many times I can’t count but I have never seen the hippo out of water. Awesome shots!

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    1. Splendidmess – YES! Both hippos emerged from the water because they FED them. I haven’t see hippos out of the water either, but man, they hussled for the grub. We could not believe how much body came out of the water. Incredible! So be there at feeding time – which is on Sunday was about an hour or so before they close. 🙂

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  4. What perfectly wonderful photos! I am so taken with wildlife, as well, but there are no zoos conveniently nearby, but I am considering getting my hubs to take me to the Knoxville, TN Zoo, which is about 2 hours away. He has been there but I haven’t had the opportunity – even though we lived in Knoxville for 7 years! The time he went I was in the hospital in a coma, and he and our sons went to try and clear their minds a bit and also visit some place they knew I would love.

    Meercats are a particular favorite of mine. We visited a zoo in Panama City once that had a great meercat habitat – unfortunately I had no camera at the time, nor was it yet a pursuit of mine!

    Glenrose rings bells for me, though, because my paternal grandfather lived in Glenrose for a time – before I was born. He designed and built a house out of redwood there, completely put together himself. There are no nails used in the house – it was entirely constructed with brass screws! He had all sort of innovations that he designed for that house – one of which was a fireplace that automatically sensed when the fire was low, and dropped a log onto the fire from a storage compartment near the flue! It was apparently very safe; I never saw this particular invention, but my Dad used to tell me about it. It was at this house that my G-Daddy had a “bird farm.” He raised all sorts of birds – budgies, peafowl, ducks, geese, guineas, etc. And one parrot. The parrot had one word in his vocabulary. He escaped from his aviary one time and was found a few days later because of that one word. He was heard screaming from the woods nearby, “HELP!” Guess if you are only going to teach a parrot one word, that would be the one!

    I look forward to your Glenrose photos!

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    1. Paula – That house sounds fabulous! What an inventor he was. 🙂 Glenrose is also where the dinosaur park is with the fossil footprints. I really want to visit the San Diego Zoo now. It got bumped VERY high on my list. I say – go for it! Get to Knoxville and spend the day at the zoo, it’s soooo worth it.

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  6. Lu

    Beautiful photos! I’m not normally a fan of zoos (I’ve been spoilt by living in South Africa with access to game parks).. but these animals are looking beautiful and healthy. I guess zoos help you get the close up shots of animals, which is kinda hard to do in the game parks when the animals don’t sit so close to the road! Lovely post

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    1. Lu – To see the animals in the wild would be incredible! You are sooo lucky! And lots of zoos are really stinky and gross. This zoo is very, very nice. One of the best in Texas. It is nice being up close. A lot of these shots, I am shooting through mesh fences, smudged glass, and over tops of things. It’s not as easy as I would like, but loads of fun. Next time, I am bringing windex wipes.

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  8. Fabulous shots! I could spend all day just photographing the parrots. I fill up my memory card every time I leave the house… ahhh – what to do with all of those photos…

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    1. CMsmith – Oh!!! Thank-you! Thank-you! Where do I mail you a check?? That is the BEST compliment EVER! :-))

      I must admit the Eagle photo – I used a fill flash – and it doesn’t look real to me. Which I am fascinated by…but I’m not sure if that makes it professional looking or not? Like maybe it should look real? I keep debating on that one. 🙂

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    1. Thanks Lissa! I have learned A LOT since I started photography classes in January this year. I went from auto mode to manual – it’s been a nice journey. I’ve always loved taking pictures.

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    1. Thanks Jean! That croc/gator thing was in a big aquarium. I just stuck my lens up to the glass and focused. It’s like another piece of glass at the end of the lens. It’s hard to find a spot with no smudges. 🙂 He did come up close to the glass too. That eye was cool!

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  17. OH!!! A Meerkat! I just Love Meerkats! They are my favorites!!! Just to let you know, I am fine! I am going in to have cataract surgery in a few weeks, but that’s a piece of cake, I am told!

    Thanks for the terrific animal pics!!!

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