Hi folks ,
wanted to share this image with the funny expression on the faces of the two 3 years old twins of our Bonobos.
The Zoo where i work , just opened a new outdoor exhibit for the Monkeys and the Public , just this week .
The Bonobos have never been in the open before , sad for them , but that has changed for the better now, luckily . But as always with things like that , you need to have the money to build this and keep it running.
What i have heard from my colleagues who work their , they have been firstly kind of afraid with all the new stuff they saw (flying birds , grass , plants etc ), but after a short while they became very comfy with the new things.
By the end of the week, when i took this image , they looked very relaxed and were interacting with the visitors (through the glass ) and the other animals who are able to get through the net that is built to keep the monkeys in the exhibit.
Was fun to watch , that specially the twins were having a lot of fun , from my perspective, making stupid things with monkeys on the other side of the glass , well it looked almost like monkeys on both sides .............
Canon EOS 1Dx
EF 100 - 400 IS L at 100 mm
HH
F 4,5 ; Iso 2500 ; 1/ 640 sec ; shot through glass
Processed with Canon DPP 4 and PS CC cropped for comp from bottom, top and rhs. Cloned out some stuff in the grass.
Thanks for watching and commenting to my previous thread .
I never would have thought this was taken through glass. Yes, both expressions are priceless. The green grass is a nice backdrop for these dark subjects. Glad to hear the monkeys have been given a better space to frolic around in...
Hi Andreas - It's great that they now have a better environment and are adjusting to it. Love the expression of the one standing. I hope the glass stays this clean, no evidence it was shot through glass. Nice colors too.
Hi Andreas, firstly the keepers have impeccable glass, no marks, streaks etc, how do they keep it so clean and the DoF 4.5, that is amazing IMHO.
The expressions are priceless, but it's sad to learn they have not experienced simple things we take for granted, like grass, birds, plants, did they come from another zoo, enclosure... I know this is off topic, but curious and picking up from within the intro. I also can't believe they are three years old!!!
Be nice if you are able to get within the compound with the other keeps to get a better POV. Good depth of detail & clarity, personally I'm OK with the blacks, they have a quality, although the grass does look a wee bit vibrant? I always think their faces convey wizened old people.
Thanks Daniel , Rachel , Neil and Steve for your comments /feedback .
Steve - the exhibit is almost brand new so the marks on the glass are quite less visible at the moment , the visitors and the Bonobos have not yet scratched them , but will follow soon (my own experience with visitors )
Our troop of Bonobos never saw the nice stuff before , the twins are born here and the adults came from different Zoos from all over the world many moons ago . We keep a group of 7 individuals with the two twins and another younger baby .
Sadly not doable to get into the enclosure for better views and IQ, you cannot separate the youngsters from mummy , going in there with mummy , too dangerous she would rip me and the keeper apart .So i stay outside.
We keep our human monkeys with hands off handling , had an accident in the past , a keeper got attacked by a hand raised Orang Utan . So the boss decided to stop the close contact. I myself played with young Gorillas in the past in our place , i can tell you even if they are young of age they have so much power and strength .
Hope this helps with your questions , and not going too off topic.
I have a similar image of two young baboons taken in the Kruger Park only days ago, don't think it is as good as yours because the lighting conditions were very poor I am really enjoying viewing this, indeed your subjects are in captivity but they seem to have a little fun, I must add here that I went to visit the Zoo in Berlin some years ago and was impressed with the environment created for the animals. I take it this place is just as neat, and not surprised at all that you could shoot through the glass - I have this pleasant memory of Germany and the places I have seen, learnt a lot during my stay, and up to this day I look after my own place in true "German style". Too tidy for some, but I love it!
Great image, I like the crop and presentation, lovely expression on the subjects' face and nice detail in the dark fur, nice action captured, well exposed and processed - well done Andreas!!!
This is lovely and I really enjoyed looking at it. Most entertaining.
This makes me think that I must go to zoos/wildlife centres when back in UK as there are some great shots to be made.
Ed