I’m curious about people, their lives and stories and through the years I’ve come across lots of folk doing a whole host of interesting things in their world of work and extra curricular activities. I came up with an idea to delve deeper into who they are and what they do so that I could share their stories with you.
I chose five people, did some research and posed them a set of questions. Mostly this little project is fulfilling my nosiness and maybe yours too ;-)
I hope that little threads of interconnectedness will weave between the interviews and the love for their craft and careers is shared here for you to discover. If you’ve enjoyed reading them, please feel free to leave a comment and pass the stories on to someone else who might like to read them.
INTERVIEW NO.3 - MARK HARDER, PHOTOGRAPHER
Welcome to the third interview of this series I’m very pleased to share some insights into the world of wildlife photographer Mark Harder.
Please could you give us a brief introduction - who you are, where you are and what you do?
My name is Mark Harder and moved to the UK in 2005 from Australia. I live in the north west with my wife and three Vizslas. I also have two adult children.
My day job is mostly taken up by trying to convince pupils from the ages of 11-16 that an education is important and I specialise in Science. I took up wildlife photography as an outlet as teaching can be quite stressful and being outdoors watching nature is one of the best ways to see the stress melt away.
How long have you been using a camera and was wildlife the first focus of your photography?
I’ve always had a camera since high school, but it wasn’t till 2020 during lockdown I took up wildlife photography. My father got me into birdwatching at an early age and so the progression was made very easy. That and being out constantly walking the dog, I thought it’d be useful to carry a camera with me.
Do you teach photography?
I wish I was out full time photographing wildlife, especially birds of prey but, it is only a hobby for now. I have been asked by my school to start a photography club so I will be helping pupils catch the bug.
Your photographs look like they have taken years to perfect. Have you taken a lot of bad photos along the way? What approach have you taken to learning?
Thank you, yes there have been many bad photos over the last 4 years and I’m always learning. I just purchased a new mirrorless Nikon camera and the number of keepers has improved somewhat but that is due to the 20 frames a second, not my skills getting any better.
I’m guessing it takes an enormous amount of patience to get ‘the shot’. Do you enjoy the process of just being and waiting or is it a frustration?
It’s all about the process for me. I love nothing better than to be out in nature exploring and it’s a bonus to have the ability to record it. It does take a lot of time to get the shot but I’ve been very lucky to have been in the right place at the right time over the years.
Saying that, I do a lot of research on species I’m photographing so knowing what to expect does save preparation time.
Without giving all your secrets away, where is your favourite spot to take photos?
My favourite place to photograph wildlife isn’t one particular spot but an area of outstanding beauty which is called the Forest of Bowland in the north west of England. There are over 50 barns with at least two barn owls in each, so it keeps me busy. Having the ability to get in the car and watching owls within 15 mins is just amazing and I consider myself quite lucky.
We know what you have seen, but do you think the wildlife has seen you? If so, could you describe an encounter for us?
One time I set myself 30 mins to find a Tawny Owl in an area that was well known for it. I’d been looking under trees for a good 20 minutes with no luck so I started to make my way out of the dense forest and back to a footpath. As I stepped out onto the footpath, I turned around and the Owl was staring straight at me in the tree I was under just a minute before so I’d imagine it was there watching me the whole time. I was glad I’d moved away from it and not disturbed it as that is one of my main concerns, I try not to impact on my subjects, even making them move away from me because they are then doing something they did not prepare for, in terms of energy.
When you take a photo, are you taking it for yourself or do you have other viewers in the back of your mind?
I’m always taking photos for myself. I have three times the amount of photos that I haven’t shared. I look back on all of them very fondly and can remember the emotion the day I took the photo which is something rarely shared.
What has been the most memorable encounter you have had with a wild animal, was it through the lens of a camera or without?
It was my first visit to Mull in 2021, I’d got up at 5am on the third day in a row, so I was pretty tired but I had to make the most of the time I was there. I had made it to a location where otters had been seen the day before and I was ready for anything. As I was driving along I’d noticed a young otter on the beach calling for his mother. I used as much cover as possible but the little one had slipped into the water as he’d seen his mother with another sibling. I’d turned around and quickly got in the car and started driving down the beach road with one eye on the family of the coast. I’d also seen there was another photographer with a guide walking down the road. About 500m further along I stoped the car and made my way down to the shoreline where I could get enough cover. The family were about 100m away and hadn’t seen me. The other photographer had taken advise to stop by the freshwater stream going into the lock by his guide.
Fortunately, the otters had bypassed the stream and came out of the water only 10m from me and decided to preen themselves and each other. I’d taken about 200 images of such intimacy between them, I remember it vividly to this day. As I made my way up to the road to the car, the other photographer has asked to see the images and after looking at them said he’d been trying to get shots like that for a week and paying his guide on a daily rate.
How do you think looking through a lens alters your encounters, do you see things differently?
I do get a buzz from recording a special encounter or photographing an owl in an area for the first time. However, it’s just as big a buzz if I didn’t have the camera. It is not always about the shot.
I love asking people about their favourite tools. Apart from your camera, what’s the one bit of kit or clothing you really love?
A hat, because I spend most days either out early or late, the sun is always low in the sky so a hat is essential just to keep the light out of my eyes whilst tracking species.
Even though I’m a complete bird nerd. One of my favourite shots is the fox on the dry stone wall on a cold early morning. Is it possible for you to pick a favourite of your own?
That shot is one of my favourites too, I’d never seen anything like it, nor I will ever again. If there was another moment as special, it would have been the image I got of a dog fox returning to the den and his 6 pups running around with excitement to see his return. One of the cubs ran up to him and they looked up at their father with such admiration. I’ll never forget that moment.
Owls are clearly high up on your favourites list. How does it feel to have an owl look directly at you?
I do like having that moment but as time goes on, I’m enjoying more of the stealth photos where they don’t spot me as that changes their behaviour. I like it when I capture their natural behaviour for a moment in time.
Finally, what is the species which has eluded you and your camera that you would love to capture?
I’m pretty much happy with most of the wildlife I’ve captured here in the UK. I would absolutely love to go to Canada again and capture snowy owls in January. Another species high on my list is a Polar Bear on the sea ice. Sadly, it is becoming an ever rarer occurrence so I’d love to say I got a photo of a Polar Bear on the sea ice.
Thanks again Mark, where can we find out a bit more about you and see more of your photography?
It’s been an absolute pleasure reliving these precious moments in time.
I have a website which is www.mlharderphoto.com and my Instagram is @m.l.harder