As members of the Brookfield Zoo, we get regular emails telling us about changes that have taken place at the zoo. A recent email caught our eye. Two new Snow Leopard cubs have arrived at the zoo. There was a YouTube video of them playing in their enclosure. They are not related but are of similar age and have been paired. Just like any small cat, they were full of energy and were rolling around and fighting. Exceedingly cute!
We figured we need to get there to see them. When Hudson the polar bear was a cub, we were a bit slow in getting to see him and he was a little large by the time we first caught him. Still very cute but certainly a lot bigger. It seems that Snow Leopards grow fast too! With winter (supposedly) here, animals outside are a rarer event since a lot fo the zoo’s creatures are not suited to Chicago winters. We also wanted a sunny day to make some photography opportunities.
We did get to the zoo and we were lucky to have a great weather day. Both the leopards were out in their enclosure. They are already quite large so we missed the cutest stage. However, they are still quite playful. They have some high locations that they like to rest on but they would still fight with each other. I watched one sneak up on the other and the leap in the air that resulted was very funny.
Shooting them in the enclosure can be tricky. There is a glass wall which gives great viewing but makes shooting a little tricky. The glass is thick and the light is very shaded. In the enclosure open spaces they are more easily shot. However, the high rock area they like to rest on is very close to the netting that keeps them in. When they are further in, a shallow depth of field will remove the netting from the shot but when they are close to it, there is nothing you can do. Hence, I apologize for the net in some shots but I still think they look cool!
You can’t cover Oshkosh this year without mentioning the Piper Cub. This year was the 75th anniversary of the Piper Cub and they came to the fly-in en masse. There was a mass arrival the weekend before the show started but I didn’t get there in time to witness that. However, the parking had been set up to give the aircraft prominence. They also made an effort to give those aircraft painted in the original Piper yellow parking together to emphasize the effect.
I wandered down to the Cub parking in the evening. I had been hoping that the late evening light would pop out nicely and illuminate the ranks with a warm glow. Sadly,m the light never really cooperated. It always lurked just behind a cloud. However, the lines of Cubs were certainly something to see. It was tricky finding an angle that really showed just how many there were. Just trust me. There were lots of them!