S’pore couple fulfils goal of photographing sambar deer together, surprised by sudden appearance of herd

‘Like a rush of adrenaline’: Singapore couple fulfils goal to photograph sambar deer after herd appears at last moment

A Singapore couple attempted to fulfil a goal of photographing sambar deer together last Saturday (5 Sept) after putting it off for years.

However, it seemed like it would not be their lucky day, with no sign of the animals as the sun started to set.

But just as they were about to leave, a herd suddenly appeared, catching them off guard.

Singapore couple tries photographing sambar deer in Gali Batu

Alvin Wee told MS News that he and his wife, Chua Li Chian, have always been nature enthusiasts.

The couple, both in their 40s, began birdwatching and wildlife photography in 2021.

They had it as a goal to photograph local “enigmatic species”, one of them being the large sambar deer. However, they “never got down to it”.

On the evening of 5 Sept, Mr Wee and Ms Chua decided to give it a try. They headed to the hilly areas within Gali Batu, where the deer were recently spotted, and set up their equipment.

Unfortunately, an hour passed without any sign of the deer. At 7pm, the couple opted to leave, as it would be difficult to get good shots when it turned dark.

Sambar deer herd emerges as couple is packing gear into their car

We were actually packing up our gear at our car when a fellow nature lover who was still hoping to catch a glimpse of them shouted to us that the deers [had] emerged from the forested areas.

Mr Wee and Ms Chua quickly grabbed their gear and started snapping photos.

In a Facebook post, Mr Wee described seeing a herd of about six or seven sambar deer on the hills in the distance.

He told MS News that they were just calmly walking, occasionally stopping to graze.

Ecstatic photographers hope to see deer again in better lighting

Mr Wee’s delight at the encounter was evident.

We were ecstatic! It was like a rush of adrenaline in your body having seen them for the first time and rushing to get shots before the light fades.

He also gave credit to the couple who stayed behind and alerted them of the herd’s appearance.

“It definitely is a tick off our local wildlife bucket list!” Mr Wee said, adding that they wanted to photograph the sambar deer again in better lighting.

The couple only snapped several “passable” photos due to the challenging shooting conditions at the time.

Also read: ‘Unbelievable luck’: Tourist finds highly venomous banded krait & spitting cobra on first visit to Pulau Ubin

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Featured image adapted from Alvin Wee on Facebook.