Animals - Up Close and Personal

I took the big one (600 mm objective) out for a day out in one of the biggest animal parks in Belgium Pairi Daiza and tried to shoot some captivating images of some of the animals I could find. Unfortunately I was too late to shoot the giant panda bears (yes, they have 2) but after seeing the pictures I shot I am very happy with the results… hope you all agree with me!

In life it is all about focus and attention and this bird surely understands this... a great look straight in the camera.

According to the bird this was his 'better' side.... again a quite stromg composition of a magnificent creature.

There are creatures who always find a way to be chill... meet one of them... Mr. Cool!

A pelican resting on the train tracks... maybe not the smartest move but hey... sleep is important!

A big bird, a stick, some water and the reflection is all it takes to turn an average image into a nice composition.

Same principle but more details on the bird...

While on the topic of nice birds... see below... she really has a kick-ass hairdresser! Great colors and cool blue eyes!

A true headless chicken - lol! Obviously the same bird in a less charming position...

Either he is waiting on the train or is looking for the fastest way to the hospital... in both cases he is standing on the correct location.... Luckily Belgian trains are always too late... if they show-up at all...

Peek-a-boo! It is a real petty that these impressive creatures are almost gone... will we never learn?

A beautifull portrait of a sweet kitty cat.... isn't she lovely?

... on second thoughts let me rephrase me last comment: '... isn't she lovely from a distance ...' She has for sure a better 'dental condition' than I have! (but she is also younger than me I guess ... lol)

Here is the female side of the elephant family of the park... for your convenience I asked them to line-up according to size and age... no problem for them ... only the little one really had to ... euh ... go .... crappy moment I know....

The King of the Jungle.... thinking, really thinking....

This little fellow was enjoying his personal spot up in the tree.... clearly my presence came as quite a surprise....

I was actually so impressed with his eyes and look I wanted to shoot a close-up.... emphasizing the expression... here it is:

Australian birdy... big and beautifully colored... unfortunately couldn't stay put for second... making it quite of a challenge to get a decent shot of him...

When I work with model (real ones that is) I am very happy when they succeed in strinking a decent pose and showing me they are comfortable with me... This model did that without asking.... and without me having to pay him... (yes, and without make-up!)

Great moment when the baby of one of the families wathing these monkeys decided to through his pacifier into the monkey cage... as you can imagine it only took seconds before one of the monkey decided to check the gift.... I was so hoping he would put it in its mouth... but ok, the below scene is also quite nice!

These are, without any doubt, the most vain creatures.... you will ALWAYS be able to get great shots of them... and there will ALWAYS be one on the lookout for possible treats to the family... and by the looks of it he was not having any issues with his job!

There is a moment were you just need to stop being a monkey and think about the next stage in your life... seems this was that moment for this fellow!

The fastest land creature having a great time! Yes, they belong in the wild but clearly they can also enjoy the captivity.... and they tend to live longer.... still... he should be enjoying the wild...

Another great creature.... the pelican.... really like his eyes.

Here is another one who has a very specific style when it comes to hair (yeah, feathers.... I know) - I was unable to get the contact details of his hairdresser...