Richmond Park - Deer

These images were taken at the start of the month, before the increase in Covid restrictions for London.  I was in the park for dawn, along with a couple of dozen other photographers.  Maybe it was becasue it was a Sunday, but there did seem to be many more 'togs than on my last visit a couple of years ago.  The morning started quite cloudy, but eventually the sun broke through and, for a while, there was some lovely light.  I saw one proper fight between a dominat male and a callenger (my first one after many such mornings), but it was too far away for decent shots.  I had to make do with some practice fencing between younger males, a huge amount of bellowing and, another first for me, one stag getting the reward for his hard work. 

A Morning At Richmond Park

I visited Richmond Park on a much better day than my trip to Winkworth Arboretum.  The sky was blue, it was frosty underfoot and the low morning sun was gave some lovely light.  I was in search of rutting deer.  Sadly, the rut seemed to be over.  I did find one stag with a small harem of hinds and a few younger males. The big male was making his presence known with some enthusiastic bellowing.  At the right angle his breath caught the morning light.  I spent ages trying to capture this, the first shot here being my most successful.

Deer Watching in Richmond Park

Last week, I spent a morning in Richmond Park photographing the deer.  Despite having a friend who lives just around the corner, it was my first visit to the park.  It took me a little while to find the deer, but once I did, I spent a few hours shooting them in glorious light.