Fall Road Trip to Hudson Valley

I have been waiting for the best opportunity to get out from the city. The perfect time came this weekend, when autumn delivered peak fall foliage around Hudson Valley. Saturday morning, before my friends and I went on our trip, I checked the foliage map to make sure that we will catch peak time. First stop on our way upstate New York was Muscoot Farm, an hour away from the city. Last year, I found the place by mistake and this year I couldn't resist the temptation of visiting again. Growing up at the Kibbutz, I was surrounded by farm animals. Visiting the farm, smelling the hay and watching the cows, sheep and horses reminded me of home. The pumpkin patch was a nice addition and the trails surrounding the farm are absolutely gorgeous.     

From the farm we headed to Anthony's Nose. The place was so beautiful I couldn't wait to get out of the car. The minute we stopped I ran up the mountain and by the time I've reached it, I realized that I left all my friends behind. I took a deep breath and a couple of pictures, ran down and found them climbing up. The view from the top was spectacular but we were all extremely hungry at this point so we rushed back down to get some food. Driving to the diner, we took a quick stop near Bear Mountain Bridge for an overlook at Popolopen Creek. This late afternoon, food at the Barnstormer Barbeque was highly appreciated and we enjoyed every bite. Finally, we gained up enough energy for the grand finale at Seven Lakes Drive.  

5 Tips for Capturing Beautiful Photos at the Zoo

If you ever photographed animals at a zoo, you probably know that it is far harder than it seems. When taking photos at the zoo, you need to avoid bars and fences, dirty, stained and reflective glass, people that block the view and also bushes, trees and logs inside the exhibit. Sometimes you can’t even see the animals because they are hiding. Even with a clear view, the animals are most likely to be resting or sleeping, often facing direction opposite from the human spectators. On the other hand, the admission fee is much cheaper than a flight ticket to Kenya, and in one visit to a large zoo you can see more species of animals than you would if you took a trip around the globe. With that in mind, I compiled some tips that will be helpful if you want to get the best of your visit to the zoo.

1. Overcoming barriers

To avoid the bars and the glasses, get as close as you can to them. When I’m shooting through glass, I take off the lens’s hood and place the lens against the glass. To avoid bars in the photos I open the aperture as wide as possible, usually f/5.6 and wider.

As for the crowd, I strongly suggest to get to the zoo during an ordinary week day. Although it is possible to get nice photos during weekends, holidays or pay-what-you-wish days, you should try your very best to avoid them. Another possibility is to buy a membership, which (in some zoos) allows you to enter before or after official opening hours.

2. Stay in one exhibit

Zoo visitors tend to move around very quickly between the exhibits. They will spend less than a few minutes looking at a specific animal. When I go to the zoo, I choose one exhibit and stay there for most of the day. Of course, choosing the right exhibit is crucial and following the next tip on this article will be extremely helpful for you.

After studying the animals for a while, you can learn about their favorite resting spots and walking paths, group hierarchy and daily schedule – when they are sleeping, feeding and playing. Soon enough, patterns emerge, and it is becoming easier to predict what the animals will be doing next. With experience, you can also predict the location where it is going to happen. This information is crucial because it allows you to set up the gear and be prepared when the action begins.

3. Babies are always a safe bet

Babies are cute, lovable and are more likely to move around the exhibit and play. They are also very curious and will investigate every inch of their exhibit. If there is a baby in the exhibit, odds are that the adults will also be more active and display natural behavior. Among the different animals at the zoo, baby apes are extremely lovable because of their resemblance to humans and because they display a wide variety of facial expressions and emotions. I for one, can never get enough of watching the great apes.

4. Telephoto lens

Not applicable for all exhibits, but in the right place and the right time, a telephoto lens can give you a great advantage over “civilians” with their point-and-shoot cameras (and, of course, their iPhones). It will allow you to get a nice close-up portrait, even if the animal is keeping its distance.

Long focal length, together with wide aperture will overcome some of the barriers and soften the artifacts in the background into a nice-looking bokeh.

5. Love and be emotional

I have a deep, profound love and respect for wildlife. I only go to modern zoos, like the Bronx Zoo, which I know spends a lot of efforts in wildlife conservation and education. When I photograph, I let my emotions go through the lens and translate them in the photos. If you feel that emotion when looking at my photos then I’ve reached my goal.

The article was published in 500px Prime

More Tips:
5 Tips for Making the Most Out of the Next Snow Storm

I dream of Colorado

After dreaming about it for so long, I finally made it to Colorado and this time I took my parents with me. My first goal was the Rocky Mountain National Park. The fall greeted us as we drove up the mountains. Patches of yellow, orange and red escorted us along the way. Yellow grass, blue sky and sheep-like clouds formed the view wherever we turned.

The first sign for what we were about to encounter next was literally at the entrance sign. As soon as we stepped out from the car we were surrounded by cute little squirrels like this Golden-Mantled Ground Squirrel, beautiful jays and magpies. It seems that all these little creatures associate humans and food so they come right out to see if they are going to be lucky. One man standing next to me told me that the minute he opened the door a magpie immediately jumped in it to look for food.

It is very tempting to feed the wild animals, especially when they are begging for food. However, feeding wildlife is illegal and dangerous to the animals, as well as humans. One of the things one should always keep in mind is that different animals have different reactions to the same type of food. For example, most humans love avocados but it is extremely toxic to birds and also to horses, cattle and goats. Sometimes, feeding wildlife can be lethal. 

During our first day at the park we roamed around Horseshoe Park and Bear Lake. Around sunset we saw dozens of elks; bulls, cows and calves, coming from the mountain's forest toward the meadows. We heard the studs call and saw them rounding up their harems and chasing away satellite bulls who were fighting in the background.    

After seeing all the elks I was desperately looking for moose. When the sun set down I found one, but it was already too dark to take a photo. Meeting some of the locals, I ask them about the best places to see moose. They laughed and told me that the best place to see them is in their backyard. They also said that "moose are mean animals, they will stomp you to death. Mothers with calves are especially protective and you should keep away from them. You know, our old mayor was killed by a moose".

Early morning, two hours before sunrise we drove into the park. The moon, or should I say super-moon, was over the mountains looking very impressive. The sun began to rise and colored the meadows and the elks with gold.

After the sun came out we took the "Trail Ridge Road" up to the sky. During our first stop on the trail, we were again surrounded with squirrels and birds looking for food. This time, the Clark's Nutcracker, also appeared. The squirrels were fearless and they climb the humans as if there were rocks. One of them was climbing my hand while I was taking their photos. 

The weather and landscape changed dramatically as we drove to the top. It was freezing cold and occasionally snowing. At the top of the trail I was looking for pikas. If the pika looks familiar it is probably because of the pokemon Pikachu which is basically a pika. We started walking and found some elks and bighorn sheep. After a few minutes of sitting near the rocks and staring at them they finally showed up, running between the rocks and collecting food for the upcoming winter.

Stopping at the Alpine Visitor Center along the way we saw two yellow bellied marmot as we were walking through the back door of the center. They were collecting food and couldn't care less about all the people that gathered around to watch them. 

At this point we all had mild symptoms of  mountain sickness in the form of a headache, so we headed down the mountain. The Rocky Mountains were breathtaking, the view was spectacular and looking back it all felt like a dream. I only wish I could dream this dream forever.    

More Photos from Colorado - Mount Evans, Garden of the Gods & Pikes Peak: