Zoo Trip
updated: Nov 17, 2012, 7:45 PM

By Edhat Subscriber

What better place to visit to test out some camera gear in preparation for a safari trip than the Santa Barbara Zoo.

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Comments in order of when they were received | (reverse order)

COMMENT 344365	2012-11-17 07:58 PM
What camera?
COMMENT 344367	2012-11-17 08:06 PM
Great photos!! I especially like the last pic of the weasel standing at attention like a good soldier - weasels have been my favorite animal since I was a child. Thanks again for the wonderful and clear photos!
COMMENT 344371P	2012-11-17 08:11 PM
Excellent pictures - thank you very much. Exciting and also a nice respite from sunrise/sunset photos. Best wishes with your photo journey; share more in the future.
COMMENT 344376P	2012-11-17 08:37 PM
Meerkat photo is my favorite.
COMMENT 344389P	2012-11-17 09:55 PM
These are great. The 2nd to last one didn't load...can you get Edhat to try it again?
REXOFSB	2012-11-17 10:03 PM
@367: I think that's a meerkat, not a weasel. Those are GREAT photos! And speaking of weasels, did you hear about the guy who was recently killed by a weasel? He was walking down the train tracks and didn't hear the weasel blowing. Sorry. It's been a long day.
BECKY	2012-11-17 10:36 PM
I love animals and I love zoos. Great photos. Thanks for sharing.
COMMENT 344404P	2012-11-18 12:45 AM
These almost look like postcard pictures. Yes, it is indeed a meerkat in the last photo. Which begs my point. How in the heck did you get one of them alone? They are rarely single for safety reasons. Power in numbers and such. If your photos are this great so close to home, I can't wait to see the rest!
COMMENT 344405P	2012-11-18 12:58 AM
Wow - great photos. Have a wonderful time on safari.
COMMENT 344408P	2012-11-18 01:31 AM
Poor zoo prisoners. These photos seem like zoo advertising to me. Anyone who thinks zoos are okay should keep in mind that, after you visit the zoo and return home to your comfy environment, those captive animals are stuck there, in their tiny enclosures, day after day after day after day . . .year upon year. Awful.
COMMENT 344418	2012-11-18 06:14 AM
408P: I second yours. Although I appreciate what the SB zoo is trying to do for the California condor, it is much, much too small for many, if not most of the animals kept prisoner there. I know it's a tourist attraction, but it is a shame! Nice pictures but taking pictures in a zoo has little to do with taking pictures on safari, although some of the East (and South) African game parks have been called zoos.
COMMENT 344420P	2012-11-18 06:15 AM
Great photos. Regarding yet another anti-zoo comment, maybe it's time to add a S for "scold" button? I'm motivated to revisit the SB Zoo. Seldom go there so often now that kids are no longer small. Maybe I'll stop afterwards for a nice veal piccata somewhere and (assuming the metaphor is okay), sort of kill two birds with one stone.
COMMENT 344422P	2012-11-18 06:26 AM
@420P: I couldn't have said it better! Or funnier.
COMMENT 344428	2012-11-18 06:48 AM
Great images, what camera and lens were you trying out?
COMMENT 344439P	2012-11-18 07:30 AM
Zoo is perfect for testing new gear, especially for an actual safari. Looks like you have the technicals down, and your gear is getting you in close, sharp, color accurate, and most probably very high resolution. Composition skills are great. It's always a good idea to test camera gear and image processing before an event so that you trust the gear when shooting, allows one to concentrate more on composition and ideas. Have fun and post your best when you get back!
CORKY	2012-11-18 08:02 AM
Wow!
COMMENT 344450P	2012-11-18 08:23 AM
What of type camera & lens(es) did you get?
MADMAX	2012-11-18 08:41 AM
Nice!
COMMENT 344479	2012-11-18 09:14 AM
The look on that lions face reminds me of my cranky old dad, may he rest.
COMMENT 344518	2012-11-18 10:54 AM
OP here. Equipment is Nikon D7000 with a 80-200 lens. While the lens is a bit short for a safari, going through a friend's safari trip images, 200mm should be ok on a cropped sensor. South Africa game preserve critters are vehicle tame. The main reason for the zoo trip was to understand the color settings on the camera regarding animal coats. Problem with the zoo, you're shooting through glass (lion) and netting which messes up color (glass) and contrast (glass & netting). I forgot to send in the amur and snow leopards. The blank image is an EH oopsie they added in.
COMMENT 344524	2012-11-18 11:04 AM
Agree w/ 439P (are you a pro?!) Technically these are good captures - Perhaps on Safari, capture results will not reveal such sombre facial expressions. Viewing large animals in the circus or at the zoo as a child, (even after seeing 'Water for Elephants' on film) the heavy bars often left me feeling the same way as the animated story of the 'Rise of the Planet of the Apes'. Happy Safaring!
COMMENT 344565P	2012-11-18 12:28 PM
518/OP: Thanks for the camera info. I've also got a D7000 and am wondering about a telephoto - and have been thinking about a Nikon 70-300. Could you tell me why you chose that 80-200? I like the zoo and especially the San Diego Zoo for the birds.
COMMENT 344595	2012-11-18 01:20 PM
565: The 70-300 gets very good reviews. Go to Flickr and you can see what others have done with this lens (search for "nikkor 70-300"). Get a B+W MRC UV filter for this lens. I opted for the 80-200 due to the aperture (f/2.8), quality of optics at a reasonable price, minimal amount of electronics, and the mechanics doesn't suck air in to the camera (I like shooting in the bushes where things are dusty). The Sigma 150-500 would probably be a better choice for critters, but I do other types of shooting where the 80-200 makes more sense in the long run. All things considered, these zoo shots can be made with any camera with sufficient zoom and manual control - and enough patience to capture the right moment. I lucked out with the lighting on some shots and got pretty nice shots of the snow and amur leopards because I checked them out just before closing (late afternoon is feeding time).
COMMENT 344614P	2012-11-18 02:37 PM
Thank you, 595! And thanks for the filter suggestion. Years ago I spent quite a few months in East Africa with a film camera (Leica), driving around in a rented car to game parks. A Dx 200mm should be fine for larger animals and, with luck, some birds. I'll read more about the two lenses - I like f2.8 and had not thought of that lens instead of the 70-300. (I wonder if the that lens also doesn't suck in dust.)
BULLSEYEB	2012-11-18 02:41 PM
Beautiful clarity on those photos, particularly the lion! Have fun with the camera!
AUNTIE S.	2012-11-18 04:39 PM
That's a meerkat, 367. Not related to weasels in any way!.
EMUWREN1	2012-11-18 06:25 PM
Zoos are a bad places, and if people don't have enough compassion for animals to realize how unnatural and inhumane it is to keep wild animals in cages/enclosures, then, well . . . It's just a darn shame so many people lack empathy for our fellow creatures, is all I can say. Some of the remarks made on this thread give new meaning to the word "insensitive."
COMMENT 344778P	2012-11-19 08:40 AM
I wonder if people who have a problem with zoos aren't just applying our human values to the animal kingdom. You can't know what they're thinking and whether they'd be better off in the wild. In the wild, they'd have to find their own food, constantly worry about the beastie just above them on the food chain and let's not talk about poachers! I submit that if they were given the chance to experience the wild life, they'd be hoofin' it back for the country club life of our wonderful zoo!
COMMENT 345898P	2012-11-21 07:48 PM
778. It's not anthropomorphizing to feel compassion for animals that belong out in nature. Even the human animal prefers freedom to confined "safety."

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