Yesterday while travelling back from a filming location, my buddy Luke and I stopped off in the Forest of Dean for a little look around. I didn't film anything as it was only a quick visit to get a feel for the place but I did bring my primary camera on the off chance that something cool popped up.
While walking around we noticed divots missing in the path, I passed it off as a deer searching for food who had kicked up bits of grass but Luke had other ideas; he proposed wild boar.
As we walked we noticed areas where the soil had been overturned and churned up, it was looking like Luke may be correct then we heard it. A grunt from the undergrowth got both of our attentions, the fact that we couldn't see what was making the unmistakable noise fed into our concern as we both know boar can be aggressive if they feel threatened.
We carried on down the path and decided to briefly wait at a vantage point allowing a clearer view of a stream below. It didn't take long for a family of boar to come through. At a distance I noticed three young, an adult female and him. A giant adult male.
I was a fair distance away, watching from behind some cover, surely they could smell me and were aware of my presence? They carried on walking towards me.
Still at a distance I took a small handful of images and promptly got out of there. There's always the chance that they wouldn't have bothered with me but on the other hand, I didn't want to risk any headlines reading 'idiot photographer gets seriously injured while photographing wild boar with young'.
I decided a healthy amount of space and not to overdo my welcome was the best approach in this particular situation.
So there we have it, my first ever image and encounter with a wild boar; a nerve-racking yet beautiful moment in time.
Damian John Wildlife
Yesterday while travelling back from a filming location, my buddy Luke and I stopped off in the Forest of Dean for a little look around. I didn't film anything as it was only a quick visit to get a feel for the place but I did bring my primary camera on the off chance that something cool popped up.
While walking around we noticed divots missing in the path, I passed it off as a deer searching for food who had kicked up bits of grass but Luke had other ideas; he proposed wild boar.
As we walked we noticed areas where the soil had been overturned and churned up, it was looking like Luke may be correct then we heard it. A grunt from the undergrowth got both of our attentions, the fact that we couldn't see what was making the unmistakable noise fed into our concern as we both know boar can be aggressive if they feel threatened.
We carried on down the path and decided to briefly wait at a vantage point allowing a clearer view of a stream below. It didn't take long for a family of boar to come through. At a distance I noticed three young, an adult female and him. A giant adult male.
I was a fair distance away, watching from behind some cover, surely they could smell me and were aware of my presence? They carried on walking towards me.
Still at a distance I took a small handful of images and promptly got out of there. There's always the chance that they wouldn't have bothered with me but on the other hand, I didn't want to risk any headlines reading 'idiot photographer gets seriously injured while photographing wild boar with young'.
I decided a healthy amount of space and not to overdo my welcome was the best approach in this particular situation.
So there we have it, my first ever image and encounter with a wild boar; a nerve-racking yet beautiful moment in time.
1/500th - F6.3 - 600mm - ISO 12800
5 months ago | [YT] | 15