One of my favourite films is Jurassic Park, and stepping into the park instantly reminded me of that iconic scene when the giant gates open, with the film’s music echoing in my head. I felt like a true explorer. In this case, the entrance was through a bridge—not a grand and magnificent gate—but it was a small transition between the human world and the natural world. From that point, we were entering another realm. It was an indescribable feeling that still gives me goosebumps when I recall the moment.
The Magical Entrance
When planning trips, it's normal to look at images of the places you’re about to visit. It’s something I almost always do, to get an idea of what I might photograph. But nothing prepares you for the first impact of standing before a massive forest. The natural aromas changing with every step and the sound of the wind passing through the tree canopies—over 30 metres above. Before long, you're surrounded by vegetation, and the light diminishes by more than half. Meanwhile, your eyes are constantly scanning for movement, any sign of life, any animal to photograph. On this day, we were fortunate to have a guide helping us, especially with spotting elusive creatures.
Birds and Low Light
The first animals we encountered were birds. As our guide explained details about Ranomafana’s tropical forest, he would identify birds by their calls. Most of those sounds were completely foreign to me, but with the guide’s help, I began to remember a few. By the last days, just before leaving for Portugal, I could recognise some birds on my own—though not many. The first bird I photographed was a kind of colourful blackbird. And wow, that’s when I realised just how dark the forest was! I began to question how I could continue taking photos. My initial attempts went straight into the bin—painful to admit, but true. Especially when you need quality photos for books or other platforms. At that moment, I was shooting at 16,000 ISO with a shutter speed barely above 1/50 sec—far from ideal. To get a faster speed, I’d need to push the ISO to 50,000 or higher, which was out of the question. Under such conditions, every photo turned out blurry and dark. I needed a solution. Luckily, we found the blackbird again, and I managed some better shots.
The Lemurs
Finally, the first lemurs appeared! Not under the best conditions, as a crowd of tourists had gathered around them. I couldn’t even locate them, let alone get closer—there wasn’t enough space in the forest. Honestly, I wasn’t prepared for this reality. I had imagined the forest almost to ourselves, but the number of visitors was staggering. At that moment, I too was a tourist. Thankfully, our guide shared our mindset and suggested searching for other animals, with plans to return later to find those lemurs again. This was easier said than done. When hiring guides, you’re also hiring “spotters.” Their job is to move quickly through the trails, searching for animals, and communicate with the main guide when they find something interesting. This is how we found a second group of lemurs—a family of Milne-Edwards’ sifakas (Propithecus edwardsi). It was incredible. We spent a good 20 minutes observing them, giving me time for everything and more. Initially, I focused on photography, but the low light brought immense difficulties, and frustration crept in. Face-to-face with lemurs and unable to get a decent shot—would I return to Portugal without photos to show? The only solution that came to mind was using a flash, as I do for portraits and weddings. In Portugal, using flash for wildlife photography is rare—we usually rely on natural light. But I attached the flash, adjusted the settings, and resumed shooting. After a few minutes, I had exhausted every possible angle. Then it hit me—I had brought a tripod. I should be filming! I set everything up and started capturing video.
The First Footage
The idea of photographing animals faded, replaced by the urge to film them. Filming eliminated a small problem: I didn’t need high shutter speeds. A range of 1/50 to 1/200 (for slow-motion) matched the maximum speeds I’d managed earlier. Filming allowed for higher ISO settings while keeping the shutter locked at 1/50 or 1/200. But filming posed new challenges. I had no plan—no shot list, no script—just filming for the sake of it. This approach isn’t always productive. What shots would I need? Should I move to another location for variety? Pondering all this while searching for animals and vantage points didn’t yield the best results. As this excursion wasn’t on the itinerary, I simply made the most of every cooperative animal. The videos will appear on my YouTube channel, so head there for better-quality footage.
Through the Verdant Green
After leaving the lemur family, we continued searching for more animals. We encountered various bird species but had little chance to photograph them. Returning to where we’d seen the first lemurs, we were surprised to find no one there. A lemur was nearby, so close it could be photographed with a phone. With my Sony 200-600mm lens, I had to back away for decent angles. It was the first lemur I managed to film properly, which energised me for the rest of the expedition. We stayed there for ages, partly because of me—I set the camera on the tripod and filmed her eating. Yes, her. She even has a name: Simone. Simone is a celebrity in Ranomafana National Park. But her story is heartbreaking—she’s the last of her species in the park. Simone is a Greater Bamboo Lemur (Prolemur simus), often trailing family groups of Golden Bamboo Lemurs in search of a mate, but always in vain. Watching her eat bamboo alone stirred deep emotions. Is this the future for most species? Will my travels someday be filled with encounters with the last of their kind?
The Banana Thief
We ended the walk at an observation point overlooking the ValBio Centre on the forest’s far side. The view was breathtaking, though it revealed how far we were from the centre. Tired from carrying equipment up and down hills, I couldn’t imagine what lay ahead in the coming days. While enjoying the view, we noticed movement behind us—a Malagasy Ring-tailed Mongoose (Galidia elegans). Initially, we thought it was fleeing from visitors. The park remained crowded, with groups rushing along the trails, while we lingered at the viewpoint. Suddenly, the mongoose reappeared on the opposite trail, searching for food. We had nothing to offer, but it found banana peels. Desperate, it licked the inside of the peels, making use of food we’d carelessly discarded. After this encounter, we returned to the ValBio Centre.
This walk was invaluable. It helped us acclimatise, better understand team dynamics, and test equipment, allowing us to devise a proper plan for photographing animals in this forest.
The First Night of Captures
The adventure didn’t end there. Back at the centre, we prepared for the night’s activities—capturing bats for the first time! I charged batteries, checked equipment, and decided what to take. Excited about potential nocturnal surprises, we returned to the forest two hours before nightfall. Crossing the “Jurassic Park bridge” again, we headed to the sampling site. This time, our two guides joined us, proving invaluable. Nets were set up, and we waited. Meanwhile, I searched for animals, staying close to the nets to photograph bats and document the team’s work. We caught our first bat, which was quickly processed and released. Though no more bats were caught that night, I stayed busy photographing invertebrates and tree frogs.
The Croaking of Tree Frogs
At first, I couldn’t find any. It was a case of walking and walking with little luck, spotting only a few invertebrates here and there. We also saw a lemur precisely when I didn’t have my camera with me—a mistake, I know—but I was keeping watch over the nets. There are many parts of the camera that can get caught in the netting, potentially damaging the capture nets, which wouldn’t have been ideal. For this reason, I preferred to leave the camera in my backpack most of the time.
However, after a few hours with no bats, I gave in and started carrying the camera with me at all times. Sometimes it was just the macro lens, and other times the 70–200mm lens for lemurs. That night, I only managed to photograph a few tree frogs and realised that most of them are up in the tree canopies, while we were stuck at ground level. The most beautiful one was photographed from the bridge, as it was elevated, but there was no way to adjust the composition or improve the lighting.
It was a great night for testing—helping us refine our setup and teaching me how to photograph at night.
Back at the centre, we finished preparations for the next day, ready for the first official part of the expedition to begin early!
CHECK OUT MY YOUTUBE VIDEOS AS WELL
I've created several videos about wildlife photography where I explain how to photograph various species and some of the best photographic techniques. From photographing coastal birds to photographing the beautiful kingfisher, it's a small playlist that I hope you enjoy and leave a like on the videos.
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