Deer Park at Charlecote

It's been difficult to process these images of fallow deer. Deer are orangey-brown, darker brown and white. They're against green grass and green trees - should be straightforward, yes?  But of course deer are camouflaged for dappled shade, and the tonality of their brown is somehow, it turns out, very similar to the tonality of foliage green, so it's been a challenge to make the photos 'work' either in colour or in black and white.

The deer were so interesting. Many of them were skittish and I had to move very carefully around them. 

One of the stags was wonderful – clearly the ‘top buck’ and master of all he surveyed, just so chilled-out and unconcerned. He let me get to about 5 metres from him, and would stand, or sit, or graze unconcernedly with me at that distance. If I took a tiny step closer he would just step languidly forward in his grazing, preserving the distance. He’d gaze straight into the camera, and look straight at me – it was me who averted my eyes so as not to seem the aggressor! But he wouldn’t let me closer than 5 metres.