Sharing wildlife with others

Jose Antunes
Aug 26, 2017 · 4 min read

When you share the experience of the Tapada with someone, you’re always in the back seat when it comes to photography. You share knowledge, but photograph less. It fits me well!

The photos published here are, by all means, nothing special, as photographs go, but they document some hours inside the Tapada de Mafra, touring with a newlywed couple eager to explore each other’s interests. In this case photography, History and wildlife, what allowed me to prepare a tour mixing the ingredients I enjoy the most.

The journey inside the Tapada was just part of the day, but the hours we spent there were some exciting moments, as they had never before been so close to wild animals like here. Wild boars whose piglets circled us, curious to see what humans are made of, create some unique moments that will be remembered as highlights of the journey.

Deer, wild boars and dragonflies made the journey, along with some breathtaking landscapes that gave us the opportunity to talk about panoramas, and debunk some myths about creating them. I hope to see, in a near future, the results of the first trials made at the high peaks at the Tapada.

It’s a rather interesting experience to take a couple on their honeymoon to experience photographing a theme like wildlife, so I put my two 100–400mm lenses from Canon in their hands, allowing them to explore side by side the same subjects. The photos I took will be, I believe, part of a memory of these first days of their life together. The way they shared the experience, and how the photography geek helped the novice were all a rewarding moment for me, present there to assist with more complex photographic subjects, but happy to remain aside, amazed seeing their reactions while we moved along from one place to the next.

The short travel inside the Tapada gave them a taste of both the History of the place and the wildlife to be photographed there. For me, it was a moment when, again, I felt that whatever photos I take at the Tapada — or elsewhere -, they should not be “doctored” to suggest what is not there. More and more I tend to go for photographs that are minimally edited, so I know that what I share with people is close to what I saw. Especially when covering subjects I want to share through these tours. I am growing tired of promotional images that are, in the end, more a “photoshop” exercise than a real photograph of a place.

I will still explore techniques that allow me to create what I can call “strange images”, and I want to try some of those techniques at the Tapada in the coming months, but those are for the pure joy and exploration of the paths photography allows us to walk.

When it comes to images intended to attract people to visit — with me - some of the places I like the most, I want to keep it simple, so I can help them, when we’re there, to get the same results. The smiles I see in their faces suggest that I am doing the right thing. The fact that this couple decided to spend time with me after seeing some of my photographs in TripAdvisor and my website, confirms that being truthful to your ideals is the way to be. At least for me.

Tapada Diaries

The Tapada Diaries is a photographic “journal” of my visits to Tapada Nacional de Mafra, with examples of what a day of photography there can offer.

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Jose Antunes

Written by

I am a writer and photographer based on the West coast of continental Europe, a place to see the Sun die on the Sea, every day.

Tapada Diaries

The Tapada Diaries is a photographic “journal” of my visits to Tapada Nacional de Mafra, with examples of what a day of photography there can offer.

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