Bolderwood, New Forest 11 Aug 2023 11:00

Bolderwood, and the air hums with the drone of insects, sunlight filtering through the canopy creating a sense of easy-going, relaxed life in the heart of the deer sanctuary.

In the distance, at the far reach of my 400mm lens, the massive antlers of the dominant stag and his entourage float above a sea of ferns. Their massive, velvet-rimmed palms catch the sunlight, the majestic symbol of their power. And power it is, as each year, these antlers grow larger, transforming the young males from single-spiked yearlings to dominant stags with giant, multi-pointed crowns sporting broad palms.

The New Forest is a place of both wildness and human intervention which exists precisely because of these majestic creatures. Created in the 11th century by King William, for centuries these very woods echoed with the sounds of hunting, King William and his nobles pursuing deer through the ancient trees. Today, the deer roam free, testament to the evolving relationship between humans and the wild and, through these beautiful beasts, the ancient hunt is echoed, a reminder of the delicate balance between our wish to control nature and our responsibility to protect it.

Photo Details - Olympus OMD-EM5ii Lumix-Leica 400mm f6.3. 800mm(equiv) 1/400sec f6.3 ISO500. Processed in Lightroom macOS