Mountain Hare Wildlife Photography | A Day in the Hills
Show Notes
Back in October I was itching to get out and spend the day exploring the hills for mountain hares. It had been a while since I was able to do any wildlife photography as I was pretty focused on producing landscape photography vlogs. In the summer I had tried to film a mountain hare vlog but the weather turned against me and I could barely see through my glasses, the hares kept getting away from me and it was horrible! Luckily this day was the complete opposite!
I managed to find a hare pretty quickly and through some very careful movement, over time I managed to get a lot closer to the individual. The hare was being a bit uncooperative at first. Staying within its form, especially when the weather grew to be a bit too much for it and he retreated further into its form using a boulder for cover from the early snow-sleet.
As the day wore on I got very cold from the wind, putting on my back-up jacket to try and retain as much warmth as possible. For several hours I was standing on the hillside, keeping an eye on the form for any movement during all the weather Scotland could throw at me. The day was coming to a close and a part from a brief moment when I managed to get a fantastic image, I hadn’t seen the hare. I was beginning to think my day was over and then a little face poked up out of the form.
The hare was finally comfortable and ready to exit its form. The weather was now sunny and mild, the wind had died down and the clouds moved off over the hills. The hare came out of their form and spent about 20 minutes eating the grasses and heather around its form. But our time together was to be fleeting, the cold was causing me to shiver and move a little too erratically for the hare and after my hand slipped moving the camera, the hare bolted running up the hill away from me and looking for cover among the shrubs and boulders.
Still I had gotten several hundred photos, a decent amount of recording and I had a great day. I wish that I hadn’t scared the hare and got to spend more time with them but I enjoyed the time that we had and got some images to be proud of!
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Onto the Images
This was what caught my eye as I worked along the contour of the hill. My method is simple walk slowly, stop frequently and scan with the binoculars until I can spot an individual. There are guides that have created maps of all of the forms across the hills but that takes years to manage and there is still no guarantee that a hare will be in any of the forms you are scouting as they move frequently.
I just saw the ear against the boulder and that gave me a target to move closer.
Although this was one of the images I captured early in the day, it is one of my favourites! I just love the expression and I have never managed an image like this one before. A great addition to my portfolio and keep an eye out in my shop for this appearing as a print…
I put the rest of the images in this gallery, there were far too many for individual images!
After a gruelling few hours of cold, wet, wind, snow, and various other elements the day was coming to an end. I was convinced the hare was not going to make another appearance and I was a bit annoyed at the effort I had made with this hare, second guessing myself and wondering if I should have gone looking for another individual.
Then without warning, the ears poked up, followed by a nose and whole hare. Stretching out of sight and a yawn the hare was ready for some foraging. Stepping out of its form, it immediately started nibbling the grasses between the heather, as well as the soft tips of the heather. Without further waiting I started firing the camera and capturing as many images as possible.
The hare was quite comfortable nibbling away and foraging in its immediate vicinity. I was freezing by contrast! The sun had hidden itself behind the hills and it was a rather cold autumnal day. The hare hopped around and I tried to track its movement as slowly as possible but I was beginning to shiver with the cold.
As the hare hopped and I tried to follow it, my hand slipped and moved the camera too quickly! The hare seeing this, panicked and bolted up and over the hill. Hiding in the undergrowth and boulders further up the mountain. I had blown my chance but at least I had several hundred images to go through and choose my favourites.
Overall, the patience and perseverance paid off and I had a cracking session with this character. It took a long time and the weather was, as always in Scotland, much worse than was predicted. But the images at the end and the magic of being so close to a majestic animal such as this is more than rewarding for the horrible weather.
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About the Film
Just a little information about the film and how I made it, as well as some links to equipment.
I edited the film using the Free Version of DaVinci Resolve. It’s an incredibly powerful piece of software that I am still trying to understand and will possibly write an article about in the future.
All the tracks featured in today’s film were licensed via a subscription with Epidemic Sound. (By following that link, if you purchase a subscription then I will be gifted with a month free for referring you to their services)
Dismantle by Peter Sandberg
Remove The Complexities by Peter Sandberg
I’ll Go With You by Particle House
A short Kit List
These are affiliate links, which means if you follow them and make a purchase I will earn a small commission for referring you to Amazon UK. You can find out more about affiliate links here.
Main Vlog Camera is a simple Panasonic G80 with the kit lens, its a great little mirrorless camera that I got for the sole purpose of creating YouTube videos. It’s capable of filming in 4k and seems to do everything that I want it to.
Rode Mic, I got this little microphone to boost the audio quality from the inbuilt microphone.
Action Camera, I use this to film myself when walking. It’s a simple DJI Pocket Osmo camera that has a motorised 3 axis gimbal head, which means that I stay in focus and static while the landscape around me moves. It’s also capable of filming in 4k and the audio quality is quite good.
Voice Recorder, to boost the audio quality when it’s windy or I’m using the action camera I use this handy little voice recorder with a lapellier microphone to record audio.
My Camera is a Canon 1DX mark II, the perfect camera for wildlife photography! Although the newer model looks even better!
My Zoom Lens is a Canon 100-400mm f/f-5.6, a nice lens to use for variable focal length and it’s nice and light for handheld use and for trekking up into the mountains!
The Ultimate Lens is a Canon 500mm f/4 and it is the ultimate wildlife photography lens. Tack sharp, great focal length and brilliant bokeh effect when close to a subject!
Teleconverters: Canon 1.4x and Canon 2x, they are very useful in a lot of instances when you just need a little more reach to get close to the subject.
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Written by Daniel Long
Daniel Long created DRL Photography as a place to showcase his work as a photographer. Daniel has learnt a lot about photography and wishes to impart this knowledge with you, although the world is an ever changing place and he always says “you can never learn everything.” So as he makes his way, he continues to learn knew techniques, skills and information about photography. He focuses on Landscape and Wildlife photography and Daniel has a special focus on Scotland, his home away from home. As well as writing about photography and taking pictures out in the field, Daniel offers guided photography days so he can share his knowledge and locations in an effort to give his clients the best opportunities possible. Have a browse around this website to see his images, guided experiences and articles about photography. If you have any questions don’t hesitate to get in contact.
