CHALLENGING WINTER PHOTOGRAPHY

 

The Cairngorms and Monadhliath have been plagued by a blanket of low cloud last few days. Just occasionally there have been small pockets of sun or blue skies inbetween the flat light and near white out conditions. Quite challenging for any wildlife photography on the mountains. The thing is we are always challenging ourselves as photographers, sprinkled with a bit of hope that the weather forecast may be wrong!

Up on the Monadhliath today it was similar to yesterdays weather. Very low cloud down in Strathspey with virtually no wind, even high up. There was a glimmer of a break in the clouds and some brief bright spells. This quickly changed to flat light and poor visibility. Knowing this area like the back of my hand I used only the contours and certain small rocky areas to navigate for photographing the Mountain Hare. I don't use a map, compass or GPS. Just reading the landscape.  The purist form of navigation. The only other 'tool' I have is of course any wildlife footprints. The Mountain Hare is unmistakable. 

Because the visibility is so poor you need to move even slower as not to spook the hares. A big key to Mountain Hare photography is to let your subject actually see you from a distance. Don't just step up in front and surprise them!

Just as the cloud thinned slightly and a bit more light from the sun I spotted a lovely wee guy. He did get a surprise. When this happens they usually bolt and the last thing you see his their backside and hind legs zipping off into the distance. This particular guy in this particular 'Form' ( A place where hares rest and their 'home') I know quite well and he sometimes let's me stand close by. Just like today.

After 10 minutes of posing he did trot off, only to come all the way back towards me. At one point he was making a direct line for me before stopping and posing again. Fabulous.

He have me another 10 minutes of his time before heading away into the lowering cloud again. I went back down the hill content. The clouds seemed even lower by the afternoon as a few flakes of snow started to fall and the skies darkened.  Brilliant day.