Hedgehog amongst Autumn Leaves (C)

This little fellow lives in my garden and we have been feeding him over the Autumn to get his weight up. He is still very small so maybe we will have to bring him in during the winter. Anyway I took him to a local beech wood to photograph him in some Autumn leaves and really liked the dappled light filtering through the trees just highlighting him.

Hope you like him his name is Harry

Canon 1Ds MK11, 500mm Lens, 1/320, F4, ISO 200

Danny

Nice.... now admit it, you've kidnapped Edwins Hedgehog, as you say the light is very nice, hope he survives the winter OK.

Beautiful Shot. What more can one say..

Chris.

Hello Phil

I have two at the moment as I am looking after a friends who is on holiday, he/she has gone to sleep though. Edwins shots were very very nice but I don't think they would let him bring it through customs

Danny

Superb Danny.
Robert

Hi Danny,

It's my kind of shot ( style wise ) and I like the image, but it's not my kind of photography, is this a wild animal or a photographic prop.

Andy...

Consistantly beautiful images-no matter what the species-lovely

Dave

Lovely shot, gorgeous colours. Good luck with bringing them up, they're messy creatures aren't they!

I do see Andy's point though. I've fattened up quite a few hoggies over the years, but never took them out to photograph. I guess as a pro you have to make the most of your opportunities - as long as the hedgehog was happy and not woken up on purpose during the day he should be ok for one photo shoot!

i was looking on the british hedgehog society websie the other day to see if there was any modern take on population numbers...in decline? etc etc? i can't remember the last time i saw even a dead hedgehog.

lovely image by the way.

markk

Yes, they are in decline. Habitat loss is the main prob I believe and road deaths take there toll. Info here: http://www.hogwatch.org.uk/

Hello Dawn and Andy

I can see your point in not doing this type of photography but the bottom line is hedgehogs are nocturnal and the majority of the pics you see of them are taking during the daylight hours because they sell better than shots taken at night with flash. So as a pro I need to make money so go down the daylight option. I have done it with a lot of small mammals like harvest mouse and dormouse because these are creatures that are impossible to do in the wild, so I took the easier option. My hedgehog that lives with us is very tame and very rarely curls up into a ball because he knows us and trusts us, under no circumstances was he harmed just moved to a better place for photography. I like to think my images show he is not distressed.

Danny

This is a nature photograph I like very much,
wonderful light, composition and pose.
Compliments Danny, I hope you gave him an apple for this fine job.
Greetings,
Bertl

This is a beautiful shot.The beech leaves are the perfect background for the subject.Its clear the hedgehog wasn't stressed.
Just so long as he signed a model release form.
Pete

Hi Danny,

Although I don't agree with your view on this matter, thanks for the response.

Andy...

What more can you add Danny.

Steve

a lovely shot, the light and leaves are great.

Matt

really like that shot

lea

A superb image with wonderful autumnal colours. Oh and I love Harry too

Fran

Firstly, this is a nice image, you have certainly captured the colours and feel of the season.

Sorry to wade in on the topics mentioned above. This must sound strange coming from a non-professional & don't get me wrong I understand the pressures that being a business and the need for new material must have on the photographer. However, I feel and I think I put this into me dissertation on my site that you could take the best image in the world and be paid the best price but surely as wildlife photographers the image should not be our overriding objective?

By this I mean as wildlife photographers we have a duty to promote conservation of any species and we should never overstep the boundaries. Weather the animal or subject in question seems stressed or not, this should not allow the movement of the subject to suit our business needs, despite business pressures this seems to me to be to be unethical.

All that said, I do understand the pressures - perhaps in few years when I have been paid well for my work I will forget what I have just said but for the moment I like to keep focused on the real matter of wildlife photography.... conservation and awareness.

Drew

This picture- no sorry, the description from Danny - may have opened a can of worms.
Is carting a hedgehog around any different from putting an insect in the right place.? Edit - Or like taking a sticklback home to photograph in a tank ??
It seems to me that the bigger the subject then there seems to be an un written rule that messing with it looks worse,
I think the desire to take pictures that might sell is,in some cases over riding the old joy of taking nature stuff for the pure joy of it. Believe me- I've been there.
Just my views.
JR

Sorry to post again - I'd just like to add to what others have said. I see where you're coming from - you're a pro, you are making a living from this. But, don't forget that as a pro and a very good one at that, people will try to emulate you. If the pro says it's ok to move an animal to a location, then an amateur may do the same, but they're less experienced, and may not know how to look after the animal.

Also, if this hedgehog is trusting of you, and rarely curls up, remember that this may cause him to be trusting of people or predators who may mean him harm. Perhaps you should have put a 'C' in the title?

About the difficulties of photographing a hedgehog during the day - yes they are nocturnal, but it is possible to photograph a wild hedgehog during the day. They often come out just after it's rained, especially in the late afternoon, and in the autumn they may appear before dark to feed. I did exactly this a few months ago - it had been raining heavily, then it stopped, so I popped out to see what was around. Sure enough the local hedgehog was foraging in a favourite location and I got this shot. ( http://www.dawnmonrose.co.uk/photo_2883408.html ) Not as good as yours Danny, but he was wild and free. I find hedgehogs are generally very confiding animals.

Please don't take offence, these are just my views.

A really difficult subject area - what intervention becomes inappropriate - and while there are, as John hints at, some areas that we all seem to consider "wrong" and some that we all seem to consider "ok" in between there would seem to be a large grey area with differing views, which is where this shot falls. I don't think that will ever be resolved and to a large extent its about individual preferences and experience with the species involved.

The end result though is a gorgeous shot

Firstly Everyone has a right to an opinion so I just want to let you know that no offence has been taken but I will just say my opinion not in defence but just to put my side to a topic that will always have different veiws. Firstly if I am honest I never take an image thinking of pound signs there are a lot of people on this site that know me well and will tell you the same. I moved the hedgehog because I wanted to get some nice images of him in a different environment this I think I achieved with the little amount of stress to the animal. I had exhausted all the natural shots in my garden and so was not happy with what I had got so moved him to make better pics

Andy I remember seeing an adder shot that you did a while back which had clearly been moved because I know my adders and you just don't get adders out in the open like this, so if you don't believe in this type of photography why do it yourself if you want to stand a high ground thats fine but you must practice what you preach

Danny

Hi Danny,

You seem to have taken offence at my comments, these were just my personal opinion and not meant to upset you in any way.

May I also add that I have never touched an Adder and never would !!!

Andy

Andy

The Adder shot was clearly moved, so I am saying if you take that veiw don' t do it yourself and then criticise others it just smacks of Hypocrisy.

Danny

Gentlemen,

Can I suggest that if you would like to discuss it any further, then have a friendly chat via e-mail. There's no point in chucking everything around in public

No problem Nick.

Andy...

Hi All

In my book honesty about how an image was obtained (and post-processed) is essential for the credibility of wildlife photography. Even if his methods are difficult for some to accept, Danny has at least dismissed ego and vanity in favour of truth. Well done to him for that - long may we all maintain standards.

Danny, nice image; all it needs now is a big fat (C) in the caption.

Cheers,
Chris

Hello Chris

The title has been changed now (should have done it from the start) In the past I made a big big mistake labeling an image and I would never go down that route again, ego was too big at the time I supose but learnt the hard way that it does you no favours. I personally think there is room for both sorts of images, don't get me wrong I wish this was a natural shot and I surpose if I had not been honest no one would have been any the wiser. I do admire other peoples stance on this but I surpose I am to far down the road to change now. Can't teach an old dog new tricks.

Danny

Danny said:

"This little fellow lives in my garden and we have been feeding him over the Autumn to get his weight up. He is still very small so maybe we will have to bring him in during the winter."
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It sounds like that this chap would likely have not survived the Winter without Danny's initial intervention

This is not something that I have personally done, but I do not see that the welfare of the animal was harmed or prejudiced in any way. Nor is the animal being kept in captivity to be turned out to provide on-demand photographic opportunities. Presumably if the animal was unhappy, it would have curled-up into a defensive state and stayed that way. Many people without any real experience of animals and animal behaviour contribute to this and other forums and their ill-informed opinions and inexperience are considered to provide moral benchmarks for people who have spent, in some instances, a lifetime working with wild animals. How can this be considered bad practise in comparison say, to hoardes of people hunting down a tired migrant, hemming it in, and subjecting it to hours of continuous viewing, photography and video capture. Which animal do you think is more stressed.

Having said all that, I don't really like the image much. Too much dark space in the frame, irrespective of whether or not the photographer is trying to capture a nocturnal feel. A more creative approach to lighting is needed imo.

I agree entirely with Phil's (above) sentiments, however I really like the image although I would have gone for a bit more DOF to give the HHog a greater sharpness throughout the whole of its form.
The image is also a page designers dream with great dark space's for copy and titles.

You did well Danny to hide the jesses

For me personally, this is a great shot Danny, pleasing to the eye, great Autumn colours & a kind hearted storyline to add. Great exchange for a few natural shots without stress. Keep up the good work

Whether you like this kind of photography or not, i still think it is a nice image. Would i take these images myself? Most likely not! I applaud your honesty.
Rene de Heer

ps Iceland stuff is on its way.