Information regarding the Attenborough Nature Reserve in Nottingham, UK?

Hi all,

Has anyone any experience of what looks like an amazing nature reserve? It's about a 40 minute drive for me to get here and I was wondering how good the hides are for photography?

A lot of nature reserves don't consider photography when building their hides and many face the sun. I know the Sand Martin hide is enclosed for the protection of the birds, but what about the others? Are they close action or are we looking a mega telephoto lenses?

Thanks in advance.

I work less than 2 minutes drive from there. From what I remember the hides are scattered around the lakes so there are times when you will shoot into the sun, but there are times that the sun is to the side. The reserve is growing in popularity, so sometimes it is difficult to park (specially at the weekends when people like me use the reserve for a nice nature walk round the lakes rather than bird watching) .

Thanks for the reply Tracey.

I guess it's a suck it and see! As you say, if it turns out no good for photography, there's always the time to enjoy the reserve for what most of us wildlife shooters took up the hobby for in the first place.......to enjoy the nature.

What lenses would you be using? I can take my camera over one evening after work so you can see what reach you might need

I'd be using a 300mm f/2.8 with the option of adding a 1.7x TC so would be getting 500mm (or 510mm if working mathematically rather than EXIF). I've also got an AF-S 80-400mm at my disposal too.

Big thanks for your help, but please don't put yourself out.

None of my lenses go to that length (I have the 28-300) but I use full frame.

Now you have me wondering... I think next time we head over that way for a walk, I'll have to try out a hide

When I go somewhere I type the location and 500pics into Google and it brings up pictures at that location and then just check the EXF data to see what it was shot with and all of the settings.

Look here
https://www.google.com/search?q=Att...ile%3AAttenborough_nature_reserve.jpg;800;600


Before I took my trip to Walt Disney World I did this and found out that about 95% of all the pictures I viewed were taken between 18mm and 40mm so I took my Sigma 17-55 f2.8 and it worked for just about everything just as my research had indicated.