How did you get into photography?<\/p>\n
I have always loved wildlife. When I was 18, I went on safari to Kenya and a guy in my Jeep had all this great gear \u2013 I just had a little point-and-shoot camera. I bought some equipment and haven\u2019t looked back.<\/p>\n
Which shot is most important to you?<\/p>\n
An image of a red deer stag that I took in my old film days. It was awarded in the Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition, which meant a lot.<\/p>\n
What\u2019s your biggest \u2018oh drat it\u2019 moment?<\/p>\n
I\u2019ve always wanted to photograph a black-throated diver. It is rare in the UK and sensitive to disturbance, so I planned a trip to Sweden, where it is more common. <\/p>\n
I built this elaborate floating hide and travelled by ferry so I could transport it. On the maiden voyage, it started to list, then sank. I should have tested it first…<\/p>\n
Anything ever tried to eat you?<\/p>\n
While photographing brown bears in Finland, I fell asleep in my hide and woke to find a bear cub had stuck its head into the camera porthole and was pulling at my sleeping bag. I was pulling it back when its mother and sibling joined in. That was a tug-of-war I was never going to win. They eventually got the sleeping bag out and the cub ran off with it. It was expensive, too.\u00a0<\/p>\n
What\u2019s your poorest photographic yield?<\/p>\n
On another trip to Finland, I spent eight days in a hide waiting for wolves. I never so much as glimpsed them.<\/p>\n
Which piece of kit have you used least?<\/p>\n
That expensive sleeping bag…<\/p>\n
What\u2019s the shot you nearly got?\u00a0<\/p>\n
I was in Norway, checking out a hide a friend was building. He\u2019d told me not to bother bringing my camera. While on site, we saw a female stoat on the move with nine kits. It was an amazing spectacle.<\/p>\n
Any advice to budding photographers?<\/p>\n
Pick a subject or location, work it and work it some more. There is always another shot to be had. And always take your camera.<\/p>\n