Crocodile Fish (Cymbacephalus beauforti)

El Nido, Palawan, Philippines

Nikon D80 + Nikon 60mm f2.8 AF-S + Patima PDCH-D80 underwater housing + 2x Inon Z-240
iso 100, 1/200, f/16

A Crocodile Fish is resting at the bottom of the reef, off Palawan Island, in the Philippines. The bizarre aspect of this fish, whose head is vaguely remindful of a crocodile's, acts also as an excelent camouflage.

Greater Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus ferrumequinum)

Erges river, Tejo Internacional NP, Portugal

Nikon D3s + Nikon 105 mm f2.8 VR + 9 x Nikon SB-26 (with Rosco speedlight filters) +  2 x Jama BIR2 (IR cell beam)
iso 1600, 30 seconds, f/9

A moonlight night. A Greater Horseshoe Bat roams the riverbanks hunting for insects. At dawn it will get back to the old abandoned mine that shelters its colony from light and heat.

Andalusian Barbel (Barbus sclateri)

Mértola, Guadiana NP, Portugal

Nikon D300 + Subal ND300 housing + Nikon 10.5mm f 2,8
iso 400, 1/ 250, f/10

Portugal. Up North, clear waters, many mountain rivers, not many big fishes; down South, larger species but dirty, closed waters, little opportunities for photos. At the time I was interested in registering some of the preys of the European Otter – in this instance, an Andalusian Barbel – to complete an article about that particular mammal, later published by National Geographic Portugal. The opportunity arrived on morning in March, after a series of failed attempts, during a short period a couple of weeks after strong rain, following winter. It is certainly one of my favorite photos.

Iberian Ibex (Capra pyrenaica)

Peneda-Gerês National Park, Portugal

Nikon D300 + Nikon 500mm f4

iso 250, 1/1600, f/8

Iberian Ibexes, recently introduced in Portugal, inhabit the steepest cliffs of Peneda-Gerês National Park, in Alto Minho. The image illustrates their capacity for walking on the most vertiginous slopes.

White Stork (Ciconia ciconia)

Baixo Mondego, Portugal

Nikon D300 + Nikon 80-200mm f2.8 (at 170mm)

iso 200, 1/200, f/8

The purpose of this photo was to ilustrate the problem of electrocution and collision of white storks with structures of electric networks. A sunset with black clouds hiding the sky enabled this image.

Photo taken for the book "O Regresso da Cegonha-branca", published in 2010 in co-autorship with my good friend and photographer Luis Quinta.

Grey Long-eared Bat (Plecotus austriacus)

Serra do Alvão NP, Portugal

Nikon D3s + Nikon 80-200mm f2.8 (at 150mm) + 2x Jama BIR2 + 8x Nikon SB-26

iso 400, 20 sec., f/11

A Grey Long-eared Bat roams an orchard in search of insects. This is one of the 25 species of bats occuring in Portugal.

Pin-tailed Sandgrouse (Pterocles alchata)

Tejo Internacional, Portugal

Nikon D3s + Nikon 500mm f4 VR

iso 500, 1/1250, f/5

Camouflage... the weapons Nature invents are manifold...

Griffon vultures

Tejo Internacional, Portugal

Nikon D300 + Nikon 14-24mm f2.8 + Jama Bir2 (IR cell beam)

iso 200, 1/125, f/14

After each session, I assess what went wrong. In this instance, two points needed correction: use greater speed (in this image the problem is not as obvious as in others, where there were rapid movements of the griffon vultures’ heads) and try a better composition, filling up the empty space, especially on the lower right corner, which partly resulted from the position of the goat’s body. When photographing wildlife, luck plays a lesser role than is sometimes thought…

zebras and giraffes

Krugger NP, Mpumalanga, South Africa

Nikon D300 + Nikon 300mm f4

iso 400, 1/200, f/8

Redwood National Park

CA, USA

Nikon D3s + Nikon 14-24mm f2.8 (16mm) + 2x Nikon SB-28 

iso 1000, 1/20, f/9

Redwood National Park

CA, USA

Nikon D3s + Nikon 60mm f2.8 AFS

iso 1000, 1/8, f/8

Redwood National Park

CA, USA

Nikon D300 + Nikon 10.5mm f2.8

iso 400, 1/15, f/10

In my opinion, Redwood National Park is the most beautiful of California national parks, and that includes others as famous as Yosemite, Sequoia, Death Valley and Kings Canyon. Walking through its sequoia (Sequoia sempervirens) forests, certainly amongst the prettiest I have visited, our imagination is carried to a world of elves and monsters.

Garden Dormouse (Eliomys quercinus)

Portugal

The week was devoted to carrying on the work with micro-mammals. In my opinion, the most beautiful species occurring in Portugal is the Garden Dormouse, a relatively uncommon species that nevertheless may be found in large numbers in certain spots.

Nikon D300 + Nikon 60mm AFS + Canon 430 EXII + 2x Canon 580 EXII + Jama BIR2

iso 200, 1/160, f/9

Common Genet (Genetta genetta)

Portugal

Lately I have been putting the final touches to a photographic work with mammals, for which I use cells of infrared beams. The species I have been photographing includ the Common Genet, a fundamentally nocturnal animal and a good climber. Common Genets will roam in the night in search of preys.

Nikon D300 + Nikon 60mm + Canon 430 EXII + 2x Canon 580 EXII + Jama BIR2

iso 320, 1/250, f/13