Its been a very busy month, to say the least, with me leading overseas tours to both Poland and Finland respectively. In Poland, our aim was to photograph bison, white-tailed eagles and elk while in Finland we hoped to photograph golden eagles, dippers, Siberian jays and, with a little luck, owls.
Both locations were going through a mild phase with temperatures rarely going below -5 which, especially in Finland, is very rare indeed at this time of the year when -10 to -20 is the norm. However, there was still plenty of snow (60-100cm in Finland) and in both locations we were treated to heavy snowfalls which, goes without saying, can really make an image. But first, here’s a selection from Poland.
Two days in hides were set aside to, potentially, obtain images of white-tailed eagles and since the hides take a maximum of 4 photographers the group was split in two and were rotated so, while a group went off looking for and photographing bison, the other was sat in hide - waiting!
I obviously couldn't be in two places at once so I spent a couple of days with two members of the group and a couple with the remaining three. On the day of the 'Bison Safari' we got lucky with a bull being located close to the village. We spent around an hour photographing this magnificent beast in wonderful snowy conditions. It's always 'fun' focusing in such conditions where the camera struggles locking on to what is a predominantly contrast-less subject. As long as the subject allows (i.e. it's motionless) I often use Live View and switch to manual focus.
For all bison images I used a Nikon D300s with a 200-400mm which I find to be the 'perfect' wildlife lens as it enables you to seamlessly shoot portrait and contextual images without the fuss of removing or adding tele-converters.
Two days were spent in hides waiting for white-tailed eagles but, alas, although they were seen (one did actually land but it was too distant) they didn't come down to feed close enough for photography. Such is hide photography where nothing is guaranteed. However, a wild boar visited on several occasions which was a pretty good consolation prize none the less. Other members of the group also captured some striking images of buzzards fighting in the falling snow and of woodpeckers, too.
Another bison day, different group, and pretty much all the snow we had a couple of days ago had all but disappeared. However, Marek (our guide) located a very confiding herd and we spent an enjoyable ninety minutes photographing from a respectful distance as they went about their business. It was one of the nicest encounters I have had with these animals and there was a part of me that was glad for there not being any snow since it reduced the scene down to a soft pallete of browns and greens
After several days in Bialowieza we headed to one of Europe's largest wildlife refuges, the Biebrza Marshes, Poland's largest national park. Comprising of wide open flood plains, channels, fen and forest this world-renowned wetland is a haven for a multitude of plant, bird and mammal species. Our target species was the elk and, with a little luck, otter and beaver, too.
We didn't have to wait too long either. Within 15 minutes of slow driving an elk was spotted laying down in a field the other side of some trees by an eagle-eyed member of the group - Jason! We managed a few images which whetted our appetite for more. A short while after, as we drove down a side road to our accommodation, fresh tracks were spotted. We took a track immediately past them and parked. More images followed a stalk. 
They blend in superbly well and the hardest part was finding a gap through the trees. Fortunately, they would more often than not stand stock-still long enough to secure a few images. Soon after 'checking in' to our accommodation we were back out and aside from keeping watch for elk we looked, also, for signs of otter and beaver. An otter had been regularly sighted along an ice-free channel not far from the road. We waited inside the car and obtained some pretty good views at it surfaced and, later that day, we sat in the snow for around an hour and half, hoping that it would do so again. Unfortunately, it wasn't to be but it's always good to try as you just never know.
With a clear night and morning forecast we headed out at dawn and walked to a nearby forest where we had previously photographed the elk. Within moments of entering the forest two were spotted some distance away. We were optimistic. Due to overnight mist and freezing temperatures a hard frost clung to the birch trees which was just too good to resist, especially as in Southern England winter frosts have been so few and far between.
Following taking the above images, myself and Jason joined the remainder of the group who told us that an elk had walked right in front of them. Posing in the morning sun! We, enviably, looked at their images though very happy that they had obtained some marvellous pictures and as all 8 of us stood chatting she appeared on the edge of the 'frozen' forest staring at us. We were in deep shade so although she knew we were there, we were clearly harder to make sense of. We couldn't believe our eyes!
After a short while she cantered across the snowy meadow, stopped and looked at us. This she repeated, before finally entering the forest on the other side. The excitement and relief that we had all experienced it together, and on the last day too, was to say the very least, the icing on the cake and remains one of the best wildlife encounters (I think I speak for us all here) that any of us had ever witnessed. Pure serendipity! But, as the saying goes, "the harder you work, the luckier you get".
The moment we were all caught by surprise. Perfectly captured by our guide, Zenon Borawski.
Breakfast had never tasted so good and afterwards we, yet again, headed out looking for otter and beaver. As we did so a few landscape opportunities presented themselves. This viewpoint gave us all a great impression just how vast this area is which covers just under 230 sq.miles.
We returned to the same otter spot as before with a view to sitting some distance away to see if this time we would be lucky but our plan was thwarted by a 'wildlife photographer' donned in snow camo that walked to the edge of the ice with camera and tripod. He knelt and stayed for a full 15 minutes (my, what patience!) before standing and well, just standing really. Time was moving on and realising that our plan was futile I decided to move the group onto a site not too far away where we had the chance of spotting, and maybe, photographing beaver. We settled down, patiently waited and soon after the sun had set, two beavers came out and swam in front of us. At one point we could see how one was struggling to get onto the ice from the water and how the other was attempting to help it. It was just a little too far for me to obtain some decent images but it was marvellous to watch. As sunset turned to dusk we got up and headed back to the cars but delayed our journey back to the guest house long enough to soak up and photograph our surroundings bathed in pink, orange and blue.
What a day. What a trip! Thanks to James A, James G, Phil, Jason and Paul for really making the tour the success it was. There is really only so much that myself and Marek (and Zenon) can do. We can plan and make sure you are in the right spot at (hopefully) the right time but ultimately, it comes down to how well the group gels. As it turned out, the jokes and jibes commenced from day one! With the combination of great subjects, tales from the day, superb food washed down with a cold Żubr and the 'occasional' glass of vodka, how could there possibly be any other outcome! I think we were all sorry when it ended. Thank you guys, the pleasure was all ours!
