Popcorn Park Zoo is a small 7-acre zoo located in Forked River, New Jersey, within Lacey Township. For us when traveling to the popcorn zoo and spending some time here, it’s also about supporting this great organization. We always drop a few more dollars to them while we are here. They do accept donations. Since I am one of the many animal lovers of the world, I support an organization such as this. I have to tell you that my love of animals and wildlife has lea me to create a large donation section below. I can’t help myself. Please donate even a small amount if you can.
I have personally met the management and think this is just an outstanding place run in a top-notch fashion. You should visit this location, and although it is a photography site, this is one I think you should bring the family, especially the kids. Enjoy animal photography and give them some love while you are there.
If you know of anyone who wants to adopt an animal, please refer them to the Popcorn Zoo. Please visit their adoption page here>> I would like to consider adopting an animal. They have shelters in Newark, Tinton Falls, and Forked River.
According to the Associated Humane Societies, the zoo is “a sanctuary for abandoned, injured, ill, exploited, abused or elderly wildlife, exotic and farm animals, and birds.” The zoo has programs to educate visitors about animals and their environments and offers hundreds of rescued dogs and cats for adoption. You can visit the popcorn zoo and take some great photos while you are there.
Popcorn Park was established in 1977 for the sole purpose of providing a refuge for wildlife that was sick, elderly, abandoned, abused, or injured, and which could no longer survive in its natural habitat. As time went on, we expanded to include exotic and domestic animals. All our residents once faced these circumstances, as well as exploitation and illegal ownership. Over 200 of these animals and birds now live in spacious surroundings in the heart of the scenic Pine Barrens.
PLACES TO DONATE TO SUPPORT THE POPCORN ZOO
Vested Interest Fund – Donate Here Vests for Police Dogs. The Vested Interest Fund is a unique fund that provides bullet-resistant vests at no cost to every working K-9 in New Jersey. The fund was established in memory of Solo, a three-year-old German Shepherd with the Monmouth County Sheriff’s Office who died in the line of duty on June 5, 1998.
If you would like your donation to be in honor or memory of a loved one, human or canine, the Society will send out an acknowledgment card to the individual or family. Once you have made a donation, please send them an e-mail with a “Vested Interest Card” in the subject line.
On behalf of all working K-9’s in New Jersey, thank you for your contribution to the Vested Interest Fund.
Would you like to make a real difference in the life of an animal that once knew suffering and pain, or faced an uncertain future? You can! Through sponsoring one of the residents at Popcorn Park through the Wildlife Club, you can make that difference.
The Popcorn Park Wildlife Club is a unique sponsorship program designed to help support the residents of the refuge. Through a monthly donation, you will help provide all that is needed for that particular animal’s well-being, and in return, you will receive regular updates from your sponsored animal!
Find complete details about sponsoring a Popcorn Park resident in the Wildlife Club here. Whether you select a tiger or a parrot, you will make a real difference to a very special rescued animal.
There are several other programs to donate to thought the popcorn zoo – Please visit the page here.
Photography Information:
This is a small zoo. You can walk around for an hour or two taking animal photographs. There is some running water in the front of the park by the turtles so bring a small tripod for this shot, but you don’t have to carry it around the whole park. It’s best to go on a bright sunny day, so the colors of the animals stand out but a cloudy day will have to do if that’s when you go. Generally, on a sunny day here you can set your ISO to 100, shoot in shutter priority at 1/500th of a second. Don’t forget white balance of sun, shade or clouds and you move through the park. Nothing fancy here as far as photography goes. We always use a circular polarizing filter for popping out the puffy white clouds, taking the silver glare off the water and saturating the colors just right. If you would like to get a shot of the turtles with the milky water flow bring your neutral density filter.
When to Go: Weekdays, when it is slightly offseason, is best. This is a tourist town, so be prepared for people. Keep in mind this is also a milky way dark sky area, so you might want to plan your trip around a new moon or the week before during milky way week.
Camera Settings
Aperture Priority
It is generally used to control the depth of field (control how much is in focus from your subject back). If your shutter speed drops to 1/30th sec. or lower because you lack light, you will need to put your camera on a tripod to avoid blurry pictures. Anything handheld below 1/30 sec will be blurry. The higher the “f” number, the less light that will come in, and your shutter speed will drop to let more light in.
When your “f” number goes up, your aperture closes. At f-22, you are barely letting any light in. Always watch your shutter speed when taking your shot, look at the bottom of the screen through the viewfinder and check your shutter speed. Do not let your shutter speed go too low when hand-holding. Sometimes you cannot get a super high f stop because you do not have enough light. This will happen quite often at times, such as a sunset. Again, put your camera on a tripod, and now your photos will not blur except for any subject moving in the image.
You might want the opposite effect. That is when your subject is in complete focus, and the background is blurred, called the bokeh effect. You will use your lowest F-number, such as 2.8 or 3.5. Go as small as your particular lens will allow. Shooting in Aperture Priority allows you to control this.
Shutter Priority
If you have moving subjects such as people moving, you will want to shoot in shutter priority to be sure your images come out sharp. When people are moving slowly, shoot at 1/250th sec, and adjust your ISO accordingly. If they are moving very fast, increase your shutter speed to about 1/1000th sec. If it’s a bright sunny day, go as high as 1/1200 second for very fast-moving subjects.
Manual Mode
If you have moving waters here, you can do your long exposure running, milky water shots. You will have to use a tripod for this effect. All of your settings will vary depending on the lighting and what neutral density filter you have. You will shoot in manual mode for the milky waters.
ISO is always 100 or as low as your camera will allow. Aperture is f22. Your shutter speed will vary depending on the light. Take some test shots to decide on your shutter speed after you put your neutral density filter on. (It’s like sunglasses for your camera to stop light from coming in).
Use your shutter release or your 2-second timer also to prevent camera movement. Voila. You now have your milky water exposure. You will want at least a 5-second exposure for water. (If you don’t have a neutral density filter, you may not get more than 1/15th of a second in the sun. That does not give you a good effect). Go to our store to buy your ND filter. We like a 3.0 for super long exposure in the daytime, and we have a ten stop filter for bright sunny days.
Park Information
Popcorn Zoo
1 Humane Way, Forked River, NJ 08731
(609) 693-1900
Website: http://www.ahscares.org/default.asp
Hours: 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., 7 days a week
Holidays: 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Admission:
Adults – $5.00, tax included
Seniors and Children under 12 – $4.00, tax included
Children under 3 – Free!
School or other groups taking tours – $2.00 per person, including tax
Free with Wildlife Club, Share-A-Pet or Zoological Society membership card
Refreshments: Cold drinks, ice cream, popcorn and peanuts available
Facilities: Picnic area
Pets: Not allowed in Zoo for safety reasons
Wheelchair Accessibility: The sandy terrain of Popcorn Park Refuge is not conducive to standard handicap wheelchairs or strollers. Upon request, a beach terrain wheelchair is available.
Feeding of animals: Feeding of animals in the Zoo is not allowed due to the animals requiring specialized diets; however, air-popped popcorn may be purchased to feed free-roaming birds and some of the farm animals.
Hotel Information:
Clarion Hotel & Conference Center – $125.00 and up
815 Route 37 West, Toms River, NJ, 08755, US
Phone: (732) 341-2400 Fax: (732) 341-6469
100% Smoke-Free
Camping
Cedar Creek Campground
1052 Atlantic City Blvd. (RT 9)
Bayville, NJ 08721
From $44.00 offseason, non-hook up.
http://www.cedarcreeknj.com/
Restaurants
The food at the Popcorn Zoo:
Refreshments: Cold drinks, ice cream, popcorn and peanuts available.
Facilities: Picnic area
Near By Dining:
Colonial Diner – The closest dining to the zoo. Bring some snacks since it is several miles away.
Weather
For this location Read here.
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