Otters
Otter encounter February 2021
During the second Covid lockdown I was going into the office everyday, as per Boris' rules I was able to go for a daily walk and did so whenever I got the chance.
On this particular Friday I had parked up at a local park and went for a walk down the riverbank, on my way back to the car I heard the unmistakable calls of and otter cub calling to its mother. As i turned around I was stunned to see this image within 20 meters from me.
I have been fortunate to see otters in the wild at a distance before but never this close, for a moment I just froze and when they didn't instantly swim away I began to have a once in a lifetime photography experience. They stayed around for about 20 minutes playing in the fast flowing water and I was able to get some memorable shots.
This was probably only the second time I had been out with the 400mm lens and to be honest I made a number of mistakes. I had the camera on aperture priority and it was still quite dark so some of the shots were taken with a too slow shutter speed and the depth of field is very shallow.
I think if I ever had this opportunity again I would shoot manual, select at least 1/500th shutter and probably F8 on the aperture. Auto ISO would have taken care of the exposure. A polarising filter might have also helped with the contrast.
More otters! Almost a year to the day we had a walk down the same stretch of river, looking over the bridge parapet we spotted a pair of otters making their way down river towards us. A quick run round the end of the bridge and onto the bank put us in a prime position.
An Otter on Mull
Considered as one of "the big five" seeing an otter up close on Mull was a real thrill. I had just come back from a mid afternoon dip (its cold in April!) and spotted this juvenile hunting along the foreshore. Quickly concealing myself I waited for it to work its way towards me. What followed was an amazing experience with the little creature going about its natural behaviour and me being an honoured onlooker.
Clearly a youngster, it was busily exploring the rocks and just chilling out.
