Could you clarify why ?
I often shoot pictures of mammals and birds that are partly visible and from those it is still possible to sometimes id the being
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Being omnivorous has never affected my viewing/ photography/ or hunting of deer in the past three decades.
There’s a lot of conflicting positions on the entire subject, including the use of various scents, whether or not to groom trails or paths, on and on. Usually common sense comes into play.
I think he meant that hunters should not shoot what they cannot clearly see. Which is sage advice for hunters and why everyone who handles such weapons should be properly trained.
He meant many bad photos mean people shouldn’t make them anymore and only shoot when you see rhe whole animal, it’s unrealistic even though a great rule for hunters.
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Well heck, I think I’ve learned that one quite well, thank you!
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What I meant was in hunting you might not have a clean shot at an animal and you should avoid just wounding it or spooking it with a miss. With photography it’s more a matter that the animal won’t always cooperate and pose for you. So it’s a matter of patience to get that photo, which doesn’t always happen. I find that if I expect to miss some photos it makes for less frustration and I enjoy the activity more. And being patient can pay off.
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and one advice from Miller, watch those corners.
slow down when you’re rounding a corner in the trail or coming out from behind a line of vegetation. I’ve missed many a great encounters because I was too casual moving into an open area and the animals spot me before I spot them.
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Because I see observations in which the alleged subject (per observer’s notes) isn’t visible in the photo.
I recently photo’d an American Bittern that I never saw. Another birder pointed out where the bird was lurking in some dense reeds at a distance but I couldn’t spot it … so I shot a bunch of pics of the area he was indicating. After I got home I found the bittern in one of my images, well-camouflaged. Not a great shot but diagnosable.
The hunter equivalent would be to fire your gun repeatedly into dense vegetation where some animal is thought to be lurking. Obviously not a recommended practice.
I’ve been a hunter and fisherman since I was very young. I also have a strong interest in paleolithic hunting practices from around the world. As far as I know there are four primary hunting methods.
- stalking - This is essentially the first stage of what anthropologists call persistence hunting. It requires using all the hunters senses to detect the recent passage of a desired animal prior to a pursuit.
- Trapping - Using traps to catch prey. Sometimes used in combination with driving.
- Ambush - I prefer to call this sit and wait but it basically means finding a spot where you are likely to see your target species and waiting quietly.
- Driving - using people or other animals to push prey towards the hunter or trap.
Here is my take on how each method might apply to photography.
Stalking - Stalking requires discipline and often a great deal of knowledge. For beginners is it often best to just walk like prey. Creatures like deer walk, observe, eat a bit and move on. Mimic that. Walk 20 or 30 meters. Stop, look, listen, smell. Then repeat. It takes a lot of discipline but it works well in most wild places. Obviously you skip the pursuit phase. Take some photos and ideally move on before causing the animal to flee.
Trapping - Obviously trapping should only be used for small creatures that will suffer little or no harm. Think light traps for moths, mist nets for birds or live traps for rodents. Trail cameras are an even less intrusive way to ‘trap’ animals.
Ambush/Sit and wait - This is often the best way to see cautious creatures. You’ll need to pre-plan so that you know you have a reasonable chance of seeing what you want. Blinds, tree stands, cars etc. can be valuable here. It is also possible to just sit still at the base of a tree for an hour or two. I often used this method when moose hunting and I was almost invariably visited by curious kinglets, Canada jays, and even the odd greedy common raven hoping for an easy meal. The key here is patience. Just sit. No talking, no checking your phone, no fidgeting. Just sit. If you can sit still for two hours you may be very surprised at what shows up.
Driving - Probably not useful or ethical for photographing wildlife except in very rare circumstances.
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One or more birders sometimes inadvertently drive a bird into the camera sights of another birder. Has happened to me.
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True. That might be one of the exceptions. I prefer places where that doesn’t happen though. I like birders but when they crowd a spot to that point it creeps me out a little. Give the birds and naked apes some space.
Exactly. I’m learning this lesson as well. I figure if an apex predator like a lion is good with a 25% success rate, I can be too.
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