Mountain Hares & Landscapes: Winter Photography In The Scottish Highlands
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- Опубликовано: 4 окт 2024
- A winter trip to the Scottish Highlands where I experience the good and the bad of Scottish weather but get up the the high plateau to watch and photograph the amazing Mountain Hares. Cold and tiring but exhilarating and a privilege to observe . Being in the mountains makes me smile !
My Instagram account: / nigelpmorley
My website: www.nigelmorley.co.uk
I hadn't intended to vlog this trip but at the least minute packed the gear in my backpack. My hope it that is conveys the feeling of the remoteness and freezing conditions of this amazing part of the UK.
On this trip, with the exception of two days, the winner was the weather!! And the first few minutes just show a huge "FAIL" as I attempt a late afternoon landscape image on a loch as the blizzard kicks in ! I think it's healthy to show the wipe outs occasionally :-) .
Wildlife is somewhat tougher to vlog “artistically” than say landscapes as the subjects have a habit of running or flying off (!!) On several occasions I simply couldn’t film, take stills AND set up the vlogging camera and audio either in time or without disturbing the Hare which always has to be the number one priority as they need to conserve as much energy as possible
I’m a conservationist as much as a photographer I feel (though the two are totally complimentary in my opinion) and I’m passionate about protecting our native wildlife and it staggers me that grouse shooting estates kill thousands of Mountain Hares each year but fortunately the wave of publicity about it has recently spiked noticeably with local politicians now wading in. When combined with the evidence of gamekeepers killing Birds of Prey, often on the same estates, maybe things will change soon.
Techie stuff: Fairly simple as all Hare shots on 500mm lens at f/4 or f/5.6 at 1/500th to 1/2500th sec with . Manual exposure as mentioned in the video.
I’m looking to do a Part Two where I show the day on the hills when the weather beat me up and i’ll discuss the techniques and clothing/gear I use in what can be such a hostile environment.
Hope you enjoy the video and thanks for watching.
CAMERA GEAR USED IN THIS VLOG:
Nikon D810
Nikon 24-70mm F/2.8 VR
Nikon 500mm VRII
Canon G7x Mark II
GoPro Hero5 Black
Manfrotto 055MF4 tripod and Markins Q10ballhead
Lowepro backpacks
Lots of bits and pieces !! (audio recorder, separate lav microphone, Gorillapod tripod etc etc)..if anyone wants to know specifics please feel free to ask
Layers and layers of warm clothing, gloves etcs
POST PROCESSING
-Video created on Adobe Premiere Pro
-Images edited on Lightroom CC
MUSIC:
Dawn by Sappheiros @sappheirosmusic
Music provided by Free Music for Vlogs • (Free Music for Vlogs)...
You should have well over a million followers. Awesome page. I’ve watched most of ur videos in one night
Thanks Amir...not sure about the million but much appreciated !!
Very nice, thoroughly enjoyed this video.
Will Murray Thanks Will. Much appreciated
Great photos of our native hare Nigel - the Cairngorms can be brutal - even in summer!
Mountain hares are my favourite native animal (red squirrels are a close 2nd). Unfortunately my local estates have ignored a call for restraint and have been on major culling sprees this year and now I rarely see them on my local hills. I hope you don't mind me advertising that there is a campaign run by OneKind which has been set up to try to help this beautiful animal. I'm not an animal activist, I even used to work on a grouse moor in my youth but I think that what is happening on some estates is wrong.
Thanks for commenting James. No probs and feel free to mention as they need all the help they can get though I'm glad the culls seem to be getting a lot more attention via the likes of Chris Packham, STV and even Nicola Sturgeon I see criticised them this week. Like you I used to shoot/help on a shoot when a teenager and see arguments on both sides but the total persecution of raptors and Hares on a handful of estates is both illegal and sickening ..it also does a massive disservice to those estates who do some good work but get tarred with the same brush.
Lovley pictures and some realy good pointers as well. It's a pittty you do not have more folowers. But ceep up The good work 🙏
Thanks Conny..yes it'd be nice to get more but the algorithm at YT loves regular videos (1-2 a week) and if you're doing it for fun not a business then it's tough to do that but I enjoy doing them and always nice when people say they got something out of watching..thx again
Nice Video...seeing you after a long time...I was waiting for new videos from you..
Thanks ..I'm trying to get more down as time allows (like the two recent Bluebell/wood anemones ones) . Thanks for commenting
Yes I watched all recent videos...and after watching your videos last year I got inspired and now trying to do photography and vlogs. I am santanu...hope you remember sir..
I do indeed remember. Good luck with your photography and have fun with your vlogs.
Thank you so much sir and hope to see a new video soon from you and learn
Nice video Nigel. How on earth did you get your 500 up there? I took a 400 up from the car park, on a shoulder strap, and it darn near killed me, and that's not including other stuff in the backpack.
Thanks very much. Yes it's a big old slog up the hill especially when a lot of snow and ice like on this trip. I also have a 24-70 in the bag with the D4 and the 500mm plus the video and small audio stuff plus food and drink and a few essentials like batteries/cards/rescue bag so all in all it's bloody heavy but it gets in a good backpack which helps but I find the "slow deliberate" plodding method works....also having done it for 4 days running I did feel I was fitter at the end of the week !! It's one reason I may well swap the 500mm f4 for the new f/5.6 ..thanks for watching and commentating
Nice video. What happened to part 2
Thanks Jason. If I remember rightly, at the time I didn't feel I had enough valid footage to do it justice
Nigel Morley that’s a shame it’s a beautiful place and a cool video. Great work. When’s the next vlog. You haven’t posted for a while
You're right it is a stunning place and the big slog up the hills keeps away a lot of people fortunately especially in bad weather like in 2018. Sadly life rather got in the way of the vlogging and I've no desire to be the next McKinnon/Heaton etc so I use them very much as a nice reminder for me of my trips but you're timing is quite good as I'm just finishing one on Short Eared Owls (which will be in two parts !) and hopefully one on Barn Owls after that. But I'm hoping to still be adding landscape ones as well. My aim, if any, is just to show the beauty of the countryside and our wildlife and put over a subtle conservation message perhaps at the same time. Thanks for commenting.
Nigel Morley many thanks for your time and for your response.
Look forward to seeing them.
Cheers
Jason
Why the "camouflage?"
Just my usual RAB/Mountain Equipment wildlife photography gear. No camo.....little point, the Hares would be well aware of your presence even if I was wearing full arctic white commando stuff ! The hares all vary in their tolerance levels with many moving off when your 100's of yards away. Whilst bright red or yellow colours probably don't help (as consensus says they have a degree of colour vision), they don't always put them off