Richmond : An English wildlife, is a photoseries that I had wanted to undertake for a long time. Among the decorated royal parks, Richmond is home to some of the most exquisite flora and fauna within the United Kingdom. Established by King Charles the First in the early 17th Century, the sanctuary sprawls across a massive 2,500 acres south west in the capital. Popular for its free roaming fallow and red deer, it is certainly very unlike the first image that comes to mind when you think of London.  

Here, I have arranged the images in the sequence of the time they were shot at. From the golden hour to late in the twilight, early spring. 

One of the most spectacular sights at the park is the deer rut. The fiesty males engage in battle for mating rights, locking thier antlers. I had to be extremely cautious of my positioning, as the two young adults charged at each other. 

Deers often move in big numbers, So I had to pick one of them and wait paitiently for it to take a detour to compose the frame to my liking.  

Another great challenge was to get them in the right place. Due to the changing background and constantly shifting exposures, (either extremly dark woods or totally blown out against the sun) getting the focus and the overall exposure of the image right was a real test. 

Unlike popular opinion, it turns out deers are not that docile. They are wild creatues after all. They would be prompt to let you know the minute they feel you're pushing their personal space too much. And I found it out the hard way..

It was considerably difficult to get near a fallow deer than the red ones as they are much more skittish after the annual cul.  

Although thier crown like antlers make them look quite regal. Fitting for the locale.