The Urban Safari

If you’re like me, you used to read or at least look at the photos in National Geographic when you were a kid. There was no internet, there was no PS2, and your family vacation was usually to a boring city somewhere in the Midwest. But your folks, or maybe your crazy aunt Cindy, at least someone you knew had a subscription to National Geographic. Every month, that bold yellow cover had some sort of amazing photo on it that made you think, “Wow. Why can’t we go there on vacation?”

I digress.

My point is, if you don’t have a few grand laying around to go on safari in Africa, why not take the Metro up to our wonderful National Zoo and shoot take photos of the exotic animals there instead? Granted, many times they are asleep, hiding in a cave, or looking a little rough around the edges, but you never know…you might just get a shot like MeepFly did.

One of my favorite things about nature is the unexpected patterns that you can find if you just stop to take a look. What makes this photo great, aside from the color, lighting, and composition, is the pattern that these flamingos make. These are live animals that have somehow lined themselves up like a chorus line just to take a nap.

The weather should be nearly perfect this weekend. Get your camera off of the shelf, go up to the zoo, and see what kind of critters are waiting for you and your lens.

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

Hailing from the Mile High City, Max has also lived in Tinsel Town, the Emerald City, as well as the City of Brotherly Love. Now a District resident, he likes to write about cool photos by local photographers, the DC restaurant and bar scene, or anything else that pops into his mind.

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