Life with Red squirrels though my lens

The Red Squirrel through my lens

In 1989 i took a long break from photography through fatherhood and relocation to the beautiful county of Durham.
The only regret now was it was 2009 before i rekindled the passion i had for photography which i had put aside 20 years earlier.
I still dabbled with a camera but only a digital compact but was struggling getting shots that i was so used to capturing in the earlier years. 
So i decided to bite the bullet and invested in a second hand Canon Eos400D and with a few upgraded lenses i set about doing what i used to enjoy doing in my earlier years,
With-in a couple of outings i was getting the hang of digital photography and the best part is i could see straight away what kind of pictures i taking.
I still live in the county of Durham but now its not just my home but also my photo studio as well.
I have access to some of the most  beautiful,natural and rugged country side with views and secrets waiting to be discovered, across the Pennines to the Lake District,north to the Farne Islands and Scotland, South towards the Yorkshire moors And east towards the Eastern Coast.Teesdale and Weardale are just a few miles away all having secrets to reveal.
After joining the Durham wildlife trust i learnt about a couple of colonies of  Red squirrels located within the boundaries of County Durham,and with the camera i set off for my first experience of the red squirrel.
I witnessed my first ever sighting of these endearing little creatures in the autumn of 2012,and i have been captivated by these little creatures and i cant get enough time to spend with them.

These little Rodents are native to the British Isles and species of Red squirrels are found across Europe but is under threat by the Grey squirrel and through deforestation.With help from from various action groups across the UK  we are fighting a big battle to try and prevent the extinction of the red  squirrel.

The coat of the red squirrel varies in colour with the time of year and location.Red is the most common colour in the United Kingdom.The underside of the squirrel is always white-cream in colour.

The red squirrel sheds its coat twice a year,switching from a thinner summer coat to a thicker,darker winter coat with noticeable larger ear-tufts (a prominent distinguishing feature of this species) between August and November.

The red squirrel occupy boreal,coniferous woods in Northern Europe and Siberia,preferring Scots pine,Norway spruce and Siberian pine.
In Western and Southern Europe they are found in broad-leaved woods where the mixture of tree and scrub species provide better year round source of food.In most of the British Isles and in Italy, broad leaved woodlands are now less suitable due to the better competitive feeding strategy of the introduced grey squirrels.

I have recently become a volunteer photographer for a Red squirrel action group in the Dales to help preserve this endearing little creatures.I have also started a red squirrel group on Facebook and its growing from strength to strength to try and ensure the survival of this little colony.
Killhope Had lost a third of its pines due to wind damage over the winter months.A 5 year thinning program taken out in one night.

But this little colony coped with this destruction very well and are doing well and are in very good health.I get up there as often as i can but I'm am limited .The other colony that i have been following for the last couple of years is at Pow Hill in Derwent County Durham.They have had a bit of a struggle what with shootings and the threat of grey squirrels.

I enjoy spending time with endearing little creatures and given the chance to help raise money to help protect them.I have made some new friends who care as much about these as i do and i let my camera do all the explaining. Most of my of Red Squirrel photos were taken at Pow Hill in County Durham and at the beginning of Feb 14 i submitted a photo to the BBC wildlife Magazine and it was excepted for the March edition of the Magazine.

For  a couple of weeks i was the happiest man in Durham and it has play a big part as it has made me think more about the images that i am after. I am not after the super imposed shots but the more natural shots showing the red squirrels natural abilies and agility. 

I have become a volunteer as a red squirrel photographer for a group in Cumbria. I do some processing to my photos but none are photo-shopped as i haven't the time to figure it out so most of my finished results are done by my professional Friend that own their own photographic business so i have professional advise on tap. His advise is priceless and most appreciated,and always welcome and i think it shows in my photos.He does my printing and supplies me with my items that makes my stuff stand out from other photographers.

  I like to try and get shots that other photographers do try for.I like the unorthodox shots as sometimes they are the shots that give you the results.I like to get down to the level of my subject and i found that they are happy and will sit and eat while I'm taking the photos.
For 21/2 years i have been building a trust with this group of red squirrels and i have always tried for the natural shots and i have tried for a while to get them eating there natural food. I have always found chewed Pine nuts and that is usually a sign that the reds are in the area.
Today was one of the best photo shoots I've had in a while i got there early and was set up by 6.30 and with in 10 minutes the reds had arrived for breakfast consisting of sunflower hearts and mixed nuts.
I placed an opened pine cone in the seed tub and and packed it with sunflower hearts, i had tried this a couple of times and with no success. This morning however they picked up the cone and started eating from it.

Today i also observed that they are now starting to loose their winter coats and it wont be long before they also loose their ear tuffs.