Tom Hadley Wildlife Photography

A long-awaited dream comes true

Wed, 09 Oct 2013 17:01:41 -0400

The New Forest has always held a special place in my heart. Whether I’m walking amongst its ancient woodlands (the “New” name was only accurate back in 1079 AD) or looking out across it’s wide heathlands and big skies, it’s place that feels like… home.

In five weeks time that feeling will become a reality as my family and I realise a long-cherished desire to live in the heart of forest, with all its natural treasures literally on the doorstep.

From our new home in a converted barn at New Park, just outside Brockenhurst, I’ll be able to really learn the seasonal rhythms and observe the behaviour of many species of wildlife on a daily basis.

Five of our six resident deer species inhabit the woods, all three of our native species of snake are present along with many other mammals, insects and birds. Will I find rare species like the Dartford Warbler, Smooth Snake and Northern Goshawk? Can I capture the real drama of the annual deer rut in detail like never before? And most importantly can I communicate why this National Park is one of the jewels of our island, a place that needs everyone’s care, love and respect. The prospect of finding out is making it hard to sleep at night right now!

It’s less than half a mile from the house to the spot where I shot this image of the monarch stag of one of the few truly wild Red Deer herds in the forest and I still have to pinch myself that I’ll soon be able to consider him one of my neighbours!

I can’t wait for this new chapter of my life to begin and the opportunity to share through photography the stories of my new life in the New Forest. Here’s to the future!

Helping the Rainforest Alliance conserve the Western Red Colobus

Mon, 07 Oct 2013 18:05:23 -0400

Seeing my images used to aid conservation efforts and educate people about wildlife issues is my greatest pleasure.

So I was delighted when I was contacted by the Rainforest Alliance to see if I could supply them with an image for their website to highlight their efforts to conserve the West African forest environment which is home to the endangered Western Red Colobus monkey (Procolobus badius).

I’d spent some time photographing this shy species in The Gambia late last year, not an easy task as they are extremely wary of humans and flee deep into the forest canopy at the first sound of human approach.

But eventually I found a relaxed individual at ground level who I was able to spend a few minutes photographing as it foraged leisurely in the relative cool of the early morning at the Abuko Nature Reserve.

The Western Red Colobus was added to the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species in 2000 and is still listed as decreasing in numbers. Hopefully the efforts of organisations like the Rainforest Alliance will mean the forests of West Africa and all their many species of wildlife will be saved for generations to come. I’m immensely proud to be able to support them.

For more information on how you can help conserve our planet’s rainforest ecosystems, visit the Rainforest Alliance and give them your support.

Red Deer Swimming

Sun, 01 Sep 2013 18:32:22 -0400

Last weekend I found myself in the Burley area of the New Forest on a family day out. I’d heard reports of Red Deer in Burley Park, but had never investigated exactly where they were or how to see them.

Then I stumbled across the website for New Forest Deer Safaris, offering close-up encounters with the Burley Park herd via the unlikely means of a tractor and trailer ride. Ideal for all the family to do some wildlife watching, so off we headed to give it a try.

It transpires that a herd of around 40 Red Deer are kept in a private, enclosed 50 acre area next to the Burley Manor Hotel. It is possible to view them from public areas, but the safari offers a unique chance to get up close. The private park area contains a beautiful lake with an island in the middle and we were very fortunate to witness the herd swimming from the island to our position in order to feed on some offered snacks.

I’ve read that deer are strong swimmers and seen it on TV documentaries but I’d never had the opportunity to photograph deer swimming for myself.

After some initial reluctance from a few animals to enter the water the eldest female took the lead and swam confidently across.

Clearly shamed by being shown up by one of the girls, the second largest stag launched himself into the water making quite a splash!

He too then made steady progress across.

Some of the younger females followed in his wake and this seemed to finally provoke the herd monarch, a magnificent stag with 18 antler points, into action. He approached the water more cautiously than the other stag.

Then swam across. It was quite a sight to see just his majestic head cruising through the water.

He emerged on the near bank, water cascading off his flanks but looking entirely regal!

We spent a further 15 minutes hand-feeding the deer before the herd slowly moved away across the meadow and although that was a thrill what stayed with me was the memory of seeing these wonderful creatures plunge into the lake and show me their swimming technique for the very first time.

Interactive map of Hampshire wildlife

Sat, 17 Aug 2013 08:23:00 -0400

Hampshire has a wonderful variety of landscapes, ranging from traditional English woodland, rolling hills, wetlands and beautiful coasts. I feel very priviledged to live in this beautiful part of the UK so I thought I’d share some of my favourite locations and the wildlife that can be found there. Some of the places are well-known, others are slightly better kept secrets but I’m happy to let you in on them!

Click on any marker point to see more detail on locations and species

Wildlife Heroes

Sat, 17 Aug 2013 06:04:00 -0400

I was talking on Twitter the other day about my wildlife photography heroes and I thought it deserved more than 140 characters to tell the proper story of who inspired me. I could rattle off a list of names of people whose work I have loved over the years and who I aspire to be like, but it actually comes down to 3 special people when I think about it carefully.

The first is Art Wolfe. I remember buying a “guide to wildlife photography” book when I first started thinking about specialising in wildlife. It featured one of Art’s images and it really blew me away about how he was so much more than just an animal photographer. He seemed to be able to combine wildlife and landscape photography into one form, using wide-angle lenses rather than telephotos to put his subjects into the context of their environment so much better than anyone I had seen before.

The second person to truly inspire me is Nick Brandt. Nick has a unique style that is unlike any other wildlife photographer, I wish I knew where he had summoned the vision to create it, but it takes wildlife photography into the fine-art realm in a way I didn’t realise it coud be. I was lucky enough to go and see an exhibition of his work in London last September and was amazed at the power of his work when viewed up close. Just inside the gallery was a frontal portrait of a bull African elephant at near life-size, it must have been 8-9 feet high and it was just staggeringly powerful and utterly beautiful.

But if I’m honest, one man stands head and shoulders above anyone as the greatest influence on me and what I do.

And he’s not even a photographer. His name is Willard Price.

Willard Price was a travel writer and author of children’s books. He wrote a famous series of “boys own” style adventure novels between 1936 - 1980. I adored those books more than anything growing up and they fired my imagination in a way that has never ceased. They are probably regarded as politically incorrect and unsuitable for the Harry Potter generation but I want my kids to read them and get the same awe and love for wildlife as I did from them.

I suppose it was different then, we didn’t have YouTube or the Discovery Channel but I can remember reading about amazing sounding creatures like Manta Rays and Anacondas as well as strange tribes and mysterious jungles and it’s something I will happily spend my life continuing to love and explore.

In 1982 when I was 8 years old I wrote to Willard Price to tell him how much I loved his books. I got a postcard back (More than 25 years on I remember it had a bison on it) written in a frail, spidery hand from the man himself telling how pleased he was I had written and how he hoped I would always love the natural world. Willard Price died just a year later in 1983.

So it is first and foremost in his memory that I do what I do and if I impart in pictures even 1% of the joy and wonder about nature that he did in words then I will have achieved something of which I shall be eternally proud.