Ponor Eagle hide

The Ponor hide is the largest and one of its kind ‘live-in’ hide in Bulgaria. Works from late fall to early spring, mainly for photographing golden eagles. The hide is very spacious and comfortable, with two bedrooms and beds, heating, a separate room with a sink and a toilet, wifi internet. One can photograph from morning to dusk if there is activity. The hide belongs a friend of mine and was originally designed for a wolf hide, so that the photographers do not leave the hide for a few days (wolves are shy and very sensitive to smells). There are solar panels that allow constant online video monitoring of the hide, as well as power supply for sockets that allow us to charge batteries for cameras and devices - tablets, phones, laptops.

The hide accommodates up to 4 photographers. There are chairs and a dining table, 1 single and 1 bunk bed, as well as additional travel beds if needed. The option to sleep inside keeps disturbance to a minimum and increases the chances of land predators such as wolves, foxes, jackals and wild cats.

I have designed and done the photographic aspect of this hide, so the shooting is done as in my hides - through embrasures, which bring the lenses outside through sleeves, while visual observation is done through panoramic glasses above the embrasures.
It is equipped with the same custom-made metal bases to screw photographic heads onto, as the ones in my hides, so tripods are not necessary.

The area is very wild, human presence is rare and winter can be quite snowy, which makes the atmosphere magical and gives us an excellent opportunity to photograph golden eagles with snow. When it is not white and snowy, the background is yellow grasses and a distant group of trees, which are pleasantly defocused.

Recommended equipment:

Prime lenses - 300, 400, 500, 600 mm, convertors can also be used. Zoom lenses: 200-400 mm, 150-600 mm, 100-500 mm, 200-600 mm.

Animals and birds are most often at a distance of 20-35 meters.

The main species that can be photographed are:

- golden eagle (regular)

- raven (regular)

- magpie (regular)

- jay (common)

- fox (often)

- wild cat (rare)

- grey wolf (rare, mainly at night)

- common buzzard (rare, only if the golden eagles are not nearby)

See below photographs taken from this hide.