Life Outdoors Magazine (Jan/Feb 2020)

around in the treetops. I started seeing details and colors that I
had never seen before. There was a problem, though. By the time
I could get home and peruse my bird identification material, I
had forgotten some key features. There are so many birds that are
almost identical to each other. To solve this problem, I started taking
photographs of the birds I saw so I could put them on the computer,
and hopefully make the identification. Over time, I decided to try to
take the best photos I possibly could. At this point, photography and
wildlife became a hobby, no, an obsession.
The next step was to upgrade my photography equipment. Any
worthwhile hobby will require the latest equipment... but I digress.
As far as equipment, I don’t have what I want, but I have all I can
afford. For birding, I use a Nikon D-500 with a Nikon 200-500 lens.
I first started photographing the birds in my back yard, which
allowed me to work out the problems associated with lugging
around a camera with a big lens on it. I have a pond down in the
woods behind the house where I set up a portable blind. I spent
hours waiting for the wood ducks to come in while there was still
light enough for pictures. Patience nearly always pays off. The real
goal though was to be able to photograph the many species of
warblers that come through Arkansas. Warblers are not backyard
feeder birds. To get to them takes some effort. I try to keep track of
birds I’ve never photographed before and make them my priority.
Usually, I can get results within the current season, but sometimes
it takes years. For instance, I set a goal of getting photographs of a
Prothonotary Warbler...three years ago. I knew the habitat this bird
preferred was near water in a fairly swampy environment. For three
years, I checked an area near my house without luck. Then, at the
end of May this year, I finally came across one and got some photos
I’m pretty proud of. I might add, I was standing in ankle-deep water
when it finally happened.
Some birds are extremely camera shy. Right now, I’ve had a
Belted Kingfisher on my priority list, but after nearly five years, I still
am empty-handed.
One of the biggest thrills for me as a photographer is to get a
photograph of a bird I’ve heard of, but never actually spotted
before. Along this vein, some of my most memorable encounters
include such birds as the Northern Parula, the Prairie Warbler, the
Yellow-breasted Chat, and the beautiful Scarlet Tanager. While not
uncommon in the least, these birds came along simply because I
was not just looking...I was seeing. I worked hard for all of those,
and, like I said, these are not backyard feeder birds.
Admittedly, I’m not an expert in photography or birding. However,
there aren’t many folks who enjoy being in the great outdoors,
listening to birdsongs and trying to document the moment with
photographs, more than I do.
The crux of it
“It’s not what
all is summed up
you by look Henry at David that
Thoreau matters, who said, it’s
what “It’s you not see.” what
you look at that
- Henry David Thoreau
matters, it’s what
you see.”
Petit Jean State Park
Approximately 75 north of Hot Springs, this Arkansas park has that certain
“je ne sais quoi” about it (something that can’t be defined). Spectacular views and
one of the premier waterfalls in Arkansas, this legendary 2,658-acre state park is
bursting with natural photo opportunities.
Hiking trails lead through forests and meadows, over canyons, and along streams
and the mountainside. See where nature formed sheer bluffs, the spectacular
95-foot Cedar Falls, Seven Hollows, and such distinctive features as Bear Cave, the
Grotto, Natural Bridge, and other formations like carpet rocks and turtle rocks.
Capture the beautiful, mystical qualities of Arkansas’s first state park.
Winter P hotography
Location Top P ick
Little Leopard
Academy
5490 US Hwy 59 S
Texarkana, TX
Ages 18 mo - 12 yr
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