Wildlife Photography across the Water: hides.pop up hide.

Wednesday, 18 August 2010

Blinds/Hides-1 step beyond

I use a blind/hide for a lot of my work from bird to deer photography, They are a great way of getting close to your target species without putting any stress on them, They keep your scent in and keep you warm and dry, For years i have been using the dome type hides, I had a canvas one for years from Wildlife Watching Supplies, Infact it was so old and used that it looked mono chrome as all the colour had been bleached out by the sun, But it did a great job and was great in the winter due to its heavy canvas coat, Since moving to the States i have just used the pop up cheapy jobs, Available around $60-70 they have done ok but i have gone through 3 in 2 years so they are not built to last, When i was in the UK recently i shot with Phil Shaw and we used a square hide that i had not see before, It was well made with thick poles and very rigid, It was an American made hide and Phil told me they are around $500 or so-quite expensive but a great design, Big enough for 2 in comfort and without the sides sloping in at the top very airy-I was impressed, I didnt want to spend that kind of money so i had a look around, Cabelas are doing some square type hides from about $150 and then i popped into my local Dicks Sporting Goods and they had some that are currently in the sales from $200 down to $119 so i bought one, They weight quite a bit more than the standard dome hide, I bought a mid size hide that will take 2 people easily enough, Its very easy to erect, Just take hold of the metal 'eye' in the centre of each panel and pull it until the side/top locks open, Do that 5 times and its up, No threading rods or anything-Done, Just put it in place and peg it out-Very rigid and looks just the job, One thing i dont like on this model is that the scrim over the windows is outside but that's easily fixed, I doubt i will ever go back to a dome type hide again

Dave

Saturday, 19 December 2009

Pop up hides

One of the first things i bought when i moved to the States were some pop up hides, At around $65 they are a bargain, I had one up in my garden for about 2 months before taking it down and storing it in the garage,One of the poles that form the roof split during that time but i gaffer taped it and thought nothing else about it, A couple of months ago i had it back in place and this time one of the springs that form the wall broke and shot through the side of the hide, The other day i had it back up but the roof pole rebroke and shot through the rook and the sides have started to rot-so you get what you pay for, My last hide from wildlifewatching supplies lasted years but are very expensive and these new ones last a year if you are lucky but at the cost you can afford to throw them away, also if some dirtbag walks off with it then what the heck

Dave

Bio's

David Courtenay, a self taught wildlife and nature photographer, has been capturing images for over 30 years. He has had a passion for wildlife since early childhood and remembers being glued to the television whenever Survival, Wildlife on One and other natural history documentaries were shown. In the 2006 he swapped his established career for the life of a wildlife photographer, such a move demands a measure of uncompromising passion and commitment.

David has travelled extensively throughout Europe as well as spending more than 7 months in India working with local guides and trackers in search of Bengal Tiger, Asian One horned Rhino and Asian Elephant. He has also photographed Wildlife in Australia, Malaysia, Thailand, Sumatra, Africa, Canada and America. Working closely with Conservation companies he tries to raise funds to help Wildlife that has been put on the endangered list by poaching and habitation loss

Martin Dyer has had a passion for avian wildlife since childhood, particularly raptors. Photography was also another keen interest and it was with the specific availability and control of the whole process that digital offers that Martin was then able to combine the two in 2003. Based in the UK, Martin is a regular visitor to Scotland, specifically the Isle of Mull to watch the Eagles resident there. Other trips to Europe and around the UK are usually part of Martin’s agenda in a typical year.

However, as a firm believer on making the most of the local patch, Martin has spent a lot of time and hard work creating a wildlife garden which is reaping the rewards with many new species and varieties of wildlife. A keen member of a number of wildlife photographic groups, Martin is keen to expand his portfolio into other areas of wildlife, and has already established a wide portfolio of images of fungi.