Over the long weekend, I visited the Peak District, in Derbyshire, in the northern midlands of England. The Peak District is nestled between Nottingham and Derby to the South, and Sheffield and Manchester to the North. It is quintessential England, rolling green hills, open moorlands blanketed in heather, quaint towns and plenty of history. What was extra special was that on Saturday, I undertook a wildlife and photography workshop with one of the UK’s top nature photographers Geoff Simpson. It was a birthday present  and it was a fantastic experience. Not just because I had the opportunity to hone my photography skills with a professional, but because it got me up close and personal with some unique wildlife, which otherwise I would not likely have seen.

First and foremost was the Adder (Vipera Berus). The Northern European Adder is Britain’s only venomous snake. It’s a viper and is related to the African Puff Adder, with about 20% of the punch – but still sufficient to send you to hospital and threaten your life. Geoff took me to a site near Hathersage, to go adder spotting. Within minutes of arriving, Geoff’s keen eye spotted a snake basking in dry grass, a 2 year old female about a foot and a half long. Moments later, and high-end camera equipment was tripod mounted in front of the snake. I managed to take some amazing shots. The equipment we were using, was extremely high-end, and that coupled with Geoff’s guidance allowed for incredible close-ups with super fine detail. Below was one such shot, taken with a 300mm fixed focal length lens, extension tube and EOS 5D D/SLR. We were at a safe distance at all times. This adder had a strike range of around 6 inches when coiled, and I was always at least a foot away. (and I could run faster too)

Adder Glance, Peak District National Park

Adder sunning on a rock, Peak District National Park

It’s kind of funny really. If I were back home in Australia and you told me to go photograph a snake from a foot away, I wouldn’t have been too keen, given that 8 out of 10 Aussie snakes are venomous. The closest I had previously been to a venomous snake was seeing a red-bellied black snake slither under some logs in Kanangra Boyd National Park, in the Blue Mountains west of Sydney quite a few years ago. There was another time when I caught a glimpse of a Mulga snake, side-wind across a rusty coloured track on route to the Bungle Bungles in the remote Kimberley region of Western Australia. The Mulga snake is one of Australia’s most deadliest (okay they’re all deadly, I’m splitting hairs), and thankfully we were in the safety of a 4WD at the time. Of course, I did hold an olive python once in Kakadu: only when our guide at the time, took the lead and convinced us all it was safe to handle, with the caveat, keep your hands supporting the snake, otherwise it’s bite could rip off your nose. Not something to tell someone when they’re already holding the snake and it’s within a nostril flare of removing your honker. So the irony of an Aussie coming all the way to England, to photograph England’s only venomous snake is certainly not lost on me.

Later in the afternoon, Geoff took me to another site, near Rowsley, to photograph some Slow Worms. A bit of a misnomer actually, given it’s a legless lizard and has all the zip and curl of a snake. Slow worms tends to live under rocks, and Geoff managed to find a specimen after looking for a good 20 minutes. That was followed by an exercise in patience trying to photograph a Green Tiger Beetle. The damn things can’t stand still. If this photography workshop did anything it reinforced how much wildlife there is around you all the time. You could easily have gone for a walk and dismissed this beetle. It’s barely the size of a thumb-nail, yet under a 180mm macro lens it takes on the appearance of an emerald jewel. Granted this little gem has a nasty bite, as the local ant colonies can attest too. Below are a couple of further shots. One of a slow worm, and the other of a green tiger beetle. Take a look at the Photo Album – UK: Peak District for the rest of the shots.

 Slow Worm, Rowsley, Peak District

Green Tiger Beetle, Peak District 

It was a great day out, and now that I have learned a whole bunch, I’m keen to get out there and take some more wildlife shots. Maybe not snakes…. for a while.