Curious Squirrel Interacts With Photographer And Investigates His Equipment

A curious footage has emerged showing photographer Geert Weggen capturing a photo of wild red squirrels, while one friendly squirrel closely investigates his camera and interacts with the man.Show more

Geert is a Swedish full-time photographer who was born in Holland, and has received many national and international awards for his nature photography. He has been working very closely with wild birds and red squirrels for the past couple of years.

Squirrels are notoriously shy, but Geert has these woodland squirrels eating almost from the palm of his hand after he set up a studio in his icy back garden. Geert equipped his home in the Swedish village of Bispgarden with camera equipment, lighting and wintery backdrops, including plinths covered in ice, red berries and pine cones. A perfect scenario for filming wild birds and squirrels!

The Dutch-born 46-year-old, who works as a carpenter, enticed the animals using seeds and nuts. Geert started taking photos of the wildlife around his house through his kitchen window, which he still does, and squirrels are often in his main focus.

His outdoor studio connects the forest and his house and it is built in such a way that the squirrels that he photographs can land directly on to a high table from the trees. This table contains props and other details that he sets up to photograph the squirrels that visit his studio.

The gear he often uses is a Nikon D7100 with a Sigma 150-600mm lens. Geert places the props and food in place for the squirrels to visit, a day before he intends to do a photoshoot.

Some squirrels are very friendly, that they come and interact with him, while others are shy and run away when he approaches them. Each one has its own personality. Footage shows one of the friendly squirrels, curiously inspecting Geert and his camera equipment in detail. How cool!