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Playing Fetch with Sea Lions
Jul. 7th, 2013 08:14 pmAt the National Zoo, they let you in well before the buildings open. The gates open at 6:00 AM. The buildings open four hours later. Due to D.C. traffic, it was best that I planned to arrive at 6:30 and then wander about until 10 as, in addition to the buildings opening then, that's when they release the hounds animals into their habitats. There are a few that get out early, such as the cows, llamas and pandas of various hue. What I found out on my second day, though, was that the sea lions are out too. (This makes perfect sense, as there is no reason that a sea lion would have an inside tank.)
So, I found myself the only one in the entire enclosure and had complete freedom to set up as I wished. While I could have done a better job had I schlepped in my light stands and owned a wide angle lens, I think I did OK. After I got everything set up, it was just a matter of waiting for a sea lion to swim by. They were, of course, entirely uncooperative.
At least, they were until I realized that the fake underground grotto I was standing in was quite dark, so I was effectively on the invisible side of a one-way mirror. To attract them, I had to put something against the glass, where they could notice it. Since I was underground, I didn't need my hat, and so it was re-purposed. The hat serves as the material component for Summon Sea Lion, the incantation is "Here sea lion sea lion sea lion" (said with rising tone), and the casting time is about 15 seconds.
The spell is successful.
From there, it was just a matter of tossing the hat for the sea lion to chase and racing back to the camera to snap some photos of the sea lion in motion. Had I had my remote cord with me at the time, I would have done a timed shot, so I could get animations or traces. No luck there, but I did get some decent shots.
We played "fetch" for about 45 minutes.
( Moar Pictures! )
So, I found myself the only one in the entire enclosure and had complete freedom to set up as I wished. While I could have done a better job had I schlepped in my light stands and owned a wide angle lens, I think I did OK. After I got everything set up, it was just a matter of waiting for a sea lion to swim by. They were, of course, entirely uncooperative.
At least, they were until I realized that the fake underground grotto I was standing in was quite dark, so I was effectively on the invisible side of a one-way mirror. To attract them, I had to put something against the glass, where they could notice it. Since I was underground, I didn't need my hat, and so it was re-purposed. The hat serves as the material component for Summon Sea Lion, the incantation is "Here sea lion sea lion sea lion" (said with rising tone), and the casting time is about 15 seconds.
The spell is successful.
From there, it was just a matter of tossing the hat for the sea lion to chase and racing back to the camera to snap some photos of the sea lion in motion. Had I had my remote cord with me at the time, I would have done a timed shot, so I could get animations or traces. No luck there, but I did get some decent shots.
We played "fetch" for about 45 minutes.
( Moar Pictures! )
