Linton Zoo with Campkins
28th February, Linton Zoo, Cambridgeshire
The visit to Linton zoo was build as a wildlife workshop by Campkins cameras in Cambridge. I attended with Keith and Cathy from the photography club. I had never been to Linton zoo before it lies level with Cambridge but about 5 miles to the west. It is only open to the public at weekends. It is a small family run Zoo and his reminiscent of Paradise Park approximately 30 years ago.
They were about 30 photographers in attendance. There was a brief talk by the manager of the zoo, and then an introduction from Bill and Rhys from Campkins. We were then given the run of the zoo with the intention of stopping for lunch at about 1 pm.
Although the zoo was small, it’s large animal enclosures were modern clean and the animals looked in excellent health. We saw the tiger from a distance, however the Lyons were much more engaging. And were pacing around the front of their cage area. They were magnificent and looked so vibrant and healthy. The lioness took a liking to me and everywhere I walked her eyes followed me and she followed me along the edge of the fence line. I’ve subsequently learnt that because I was walking with a limp due to my hip she had identified me as the easiest pray and that’s why she was watching me. In hindsight, this is slightly disconcerting.
As as usual in a zoo environment we are shooting through the wire enclosures which compromises the quality of the pictures. It was an enjoyable day but for a workshop, I didn’t learn anything new.
