6. Mad March Hares
Mad March Hares, Suffolk, March
I have exclusive access to what must be one of the best locations in the country for brown hares. Working from a vehicle allows us to get very close to these animals, often within a few feet. These photography workshops will operate during end February, March and early April which is the peak of courtship activity. The usual approach is to find a female hare with one or more males attracted to her and park nearby. Hopefully it won't be long until the action starts as the males approach her. If the female is not ready to mate boxing may occur as she fights off her admirer. There is usually lots of action with the males, as the dominant one chases off his rivals. The males on the periphery will keep you entertained with images of grooming, feeding, stretching etc.
Although we intend to concentrate on hares many bird species inhabit the area and we can divert our attention to these if desired.
Cost of Hare workshop
Full day ( approx 8 hours ) £180 for one photographer or £280 for two photographers.
Equipment: I can usually get to within a few metres to several of the hares so frame filling portraits are achievable with 300mm plus lenses. However I prefer to park around 20 metres away to give the animals some space. As with most of the UK's wildlife the larger the lens the better. On a cropped body a zoom lens of around 300-400mm top end is great as it allows decent sized portraits of individual hares and allows you to pull back to ensure multiple animals are retained within the frame. There is plenty of room to store your photographic equipment in the vehicle so it is always best to bring a selection of lenses and change if required to suit the circumstance.
On my full frame body I use 600mm for portraits switching to 100-400mm for multiple animals or when an individual decides to venture close.
The day starts at around 7am and continues until around 3-4pm depending on light and activity although you are of course able to finish earlier if desired.
I have exclusive access to what must be one of the best locations in the country for brown hares. Working from a vehicle allows us to get very close to these animals, often within a few feet. These photography workshops will operate during end February, March and early April which is the peak of courtship activity. The usual approach is to find a female hare with one or more males attracted to her and park nearby. Hopefully it won't be long until the action starts as the males approach her. If the female is not ready to mate boxing may occur as she fights off her admirer. There is usually lots of action with the males, as the dominant one chases off his rivals. The males on the periphery will keep you entertained with images of grooming, feeding, stretching etc.
Although we intend to concentrate on hares many bird species inhabit the area and we can divert our attention to these if desired.
Cost of Hare workshop
Full day ( approx 8 hours ) £180 for one photographer or £280 for two photographers.
Equipment: I can usually get to within a few metres to several of the hares so frame filling portraits are achievable with 300mm plus lenses. However I prefer to park around 20 metres away to give the animals some space. As with most of the UK's wildlife the larger the lens the better. On a cropped body a zoom lens of around 300-400mm top end is great as it allows decent sized portraits of individual hares and allows you to pull back to ensure multiple animals are retained within the frame. There is plenty of room to store your photographic equipment in the vehicle so it is always best to bring a selection of lenses and change if required to suit the circumstance.
On my full frame body I use 600mm for portraits switching to 100-400mm for multiple animals or when an individual decides to venture close.
The day starts at around 7am and continues until around 3-4pm depending on light and activity although you are of course able to finish earlier if desired.