I took this portrait of a snow monkey, aka Japanese macaque, on my trip to Japan back in 2008. I was using state of the art equipment at the time. The monkey wasn’t impressed. Nikon D200 with Nikkor 70-200mm lens (at 200mm) ISO 200, f/3.2 at 1/125th of a second.

The serow is a goat-antelope and national symbol of Japan. In fact, in the mid 50s it was hunted to near extinction before the Japanese government declared it a “special national monument” to protect it from poachers. Today, the population is thriving. I saw this one while visiting the snow monkeys at Jigokudani Spring in Nagano. Nikon D200 with Nikkor 80-200mm lens (at 90mm) ISO 400, f/3.5 at 1/80th of a second.

These two snow monkeys were clearly not buying what I was putting down. Photographed at the Jigokudani Hot Spring near Nagano, Japan.
Nikon D200 with Nikkor 70-200mm lens (at 125mm) ISO 200, f/4.5 at 1/1000th of a second

Sometimes the day simply calls for a baby snow monkey sitting on wet rocks after a good rain. Jigokudani Springs, near Nagano, Japan.
Nikon D200 with Nikkor 17-35mm lens (at 35mm) ISO 200, f/3.2 at 1/40th of a second

Just a quick post — of two Japanese macaques sharing a moment — before I head off on my next adventure. I’ll be heading down to the extreme southern tip of South America this weekend for a week of puma trekking in Chile’s Patagonia region. Hopefully all goes well (my flight was cancelled and rescheduled five times already this week due to an airline strike on Latam Airlines). I finally found a ticket on another airline but it wasn’t easy. Lot’s of long layovers, including 24 hours in Santiago, but eventually I’ll get there. And I’ll be back posting again on the 25th. Hopefully a puma or two.
Nikon D200 with Nikkor 70-200mm lens (at 200mm) ISO 200, f/4.5 at 1/160th of a second.

The snow monkeys (or Japanese macaques) of Jigokudani Springs near Nagano, Japan are certainly one of the more photogenic species I’ve had the pleasure of working with. There is only one ryokan (a traditional Japanese inn) at the springs, and you have to hike in about 40 minutes, carrying your suitcase or backpack, to reach it. This could be tricky in bad weather, but it was a nice day when I hiked in as well as when I hiked back out three days later. Spending a few nights at the ryokan, gave me the opportunity to photograph the macaques after the day tourists had gone for the night. Many of the macaques sleep around the ryokan, some even up on the roof. This was one of those macaques that didn’t bother retreating into the forest before falling asleep.
Nikon D200 with Nikkor 70-200mm lens (at 190mm) ISO 400, f/3.2 at 1/50th of a second

Still plenty of shots from the Falklands to share, but I figured it was time to start mixing in a few creatures from other parts of the world. So why not a Japanese macaque to get the week started? This guy actually grabbed the front of my lens as if he didn’t initially like the composition I was going for.
Nikon D200 with Nikkor 17-35mm lens (at 17mm) ISO 200, f/3.5 at 1/40th of a second

Okay, back to business as usual (by the way, thanks for all the kind words on Friday’s post). Here’s the snow monkey I was about to post. This Japanese macaque appeared to be intensely inspecting, and it seems admiring, his fingernails. Would love to make it back to this place one day, not far from Tokyo up in the mountains by Nagano.
Nikon D200 with Nikkor 70-200mm lens (at 125mm) ISO 200, f/4.5 at 1/250th of a second

This young snow monkey was having a good time in the thermal waters of Jigokudani Monkey Park, near Nagano, Japan.
Nikon D200 with Nikkor 70-200mm lens (at 200mm) ISO 200, f/3.2 at 1/50th of a second

It’s tough to impress a snow monkey, and this guy was having none of it. Instead he was enjoying a soothing dip in the hot waters of Jigokudani near Nagano in the mountains of Japan.
Nikon D200 with Nikkor 70-200mm lens (at 200mm) ISO 200, f/5.6 at 1/160th of a second