Zoo! Part 1: Primates

Two weeks ago, Edie and I headed to the zoo because she wanted to look at animals and I really wanted to get some practise with my long lens which is quite a temperamental creature itself.  

We had quite a nice, quiet time just walking around, talking and (me) studying at the world through a frame.  Because there are so many photos and it can be overwhelming to have them all shoved into one post, I thought I would split them into batches so that they would be easier to look at. 

To start with, my 55 - 250 was perfect for the zoo and even though I didn't expect magical things with the depth-of-field or bokeh, I was well pleased.  The lens, bulky during normal use, felt very handy and light for a whole day expedition and performed quite nicely.  I'm still having issues with focus and framing on the long end and I tried not to push it up beyond 200.  Again though, for the price of this lens, I absolutely can't complain.  

Nothing quite captures the idea of an animal soul like a primate.  Here are some pictures of them. 

The orang utans were my number one priority to photograph.  They are such delicious animals and a group of them actually roams the zoo freely.  I really wanted to capture their expressiveness and the deliberate yet dextrous, human way in which they move and perform small tasks.  Because the orang utans have access to massive trees, I had some exposure issues when shooting them from a distances and against the bright sky.  By my standards, I was just able to make the photos acceptable.

On the day that we were there, there was a mother with two babies roaming freely in the trees about fifty feet off the ground.  The babies were both ugly and adorable - the first one in this post had the most ridiculous tuft of hair - and their mother was trying to wean them from her presence.  She kept moving away from them and then waiting for them to come tumbling after her and each time, she would move further.  Eventually, it was too much for the little fellow above and squeaking piteously, he went shimmying back across the trees to her. 

Chimpanzees are wily beasts and we were both very interested in each other.

The baboon exhibit was closed but I got to see the next best thing.  While I shot, the proboscis monkeys gazed at us in serene suspicion.  Not too bad for something taken through glass, I thought. 

Tamarins are my jam.  They are just the cutest little stinkers, even if they move too fast to be frozen on film.

The saki and colobus monkeys made an interesting black and white contrast.  Note to self: when I snap things too quickly in order to catch a moment, I often forget completely about metering and end up with exposure issues.  I need to track the subject and shutter speed at the same time.  Live and learn, eh?

And finally, what I think is a brown capuchin.  Focusing is a little off but capuchins just have the most eloquent little faces and I'm glad I sort-of-caught his. 

I'll be honest, I was tempted to toss photos of Edie and me into the end of this post but decided that she might not be amused at the joke.  Next time!  I hope you enjoyed the photos!