By Stan Sheram, Photographer
The preparation, the rifle, the bow, the special ammunition, the camp, the fresh morning air, the hunt, the kill, the trophy... It's all about creating memories, and nothing captures those memories like a photograph.
If your hunting gear doesn't include a camera, you're missing an opportunity to capture the special moments that you've invested a lot of time and money to create. For about what it costs for a pair of hunting boots, you can buy a decent digital pocket camera. You'll wear out the boots, but the photos you take with that camera will last for generations.
How To Choose A Camera The first question I'm often asked is, "What's the best camera?" I can't tell you that anymore than you can tell me the best rifle for target shooting. I can, however, give you some suggestions that will help you choose a good camera. Here are some considerations.
You wouldn't buy a no-name firearm from some guy named Sully who yells at you on television hawking his "AS SEEN ON TV" brand. So, don't buy a camera like that either. Buy a brand you've heard of: Nikon, Canon, Kodak and Olympus are four good brands.
You can spend as much on a camera as you did for your last 4WD truck, but it's not necessary to spend a fortune to get good photographs. Last week I saw a Nikon pocket digital camera at a local warehouse club store for $80. You've spent that much on gas going to a dove shoot and come home with a sore shoulder and no birds.
Don't get too excited about the megapixel thing. Almost any digital camera you buy today will be 6 or better megapixels and that will be adequate for your purpose. If it has more megapixels, great, but don't let that be the only determining factor.
Look for a camera that uses AA batteries. It's easy to carry spares and you can find them most anywhere. A deer stand isn't the best place to find an outlet to charge a special purpose battery made specifically for your camera.
Don't worry about all the special features; you won't use them anyway.
A good display on the back is helpful, especially if you are trying to view it in sunlight.
Many pocket cameras are weather/water resistant, a nice feature to have outdoors.
Check the telephoto zoom on the lens. Optical zoom is typically 3 to 5X; the higher the number the better. Digital Zoom is worthless.
Setting Up Your Subject You'll only get one chance to photograph your trophy kill in the field, and it only takes some common sense and a couple of minutes to do it right.
Keep in mind that the animal is the focal point of the picture. Show the animal in a dignified manner by cleaning up excessive amounts of blood or rubbing a handful of dust on areas that might be a distraction. Move anything from the camera view that might distract from the primary subject. Position the animal as close to its natural lying position as possible. Try folding its front legs underneath to raise the head. A hunter shown in the photo should be behind the animal and close enough to touch it. Kneeling 5 feet behind a small buck won't make it look twice as big; it will just look like you're kneeling 5 feet behind a small buck. Check your clothes. Your hat turned backwards and a blood-smeared shirt hanging out of your pants makes you look like an idiot not a hunter. If you want to include your gun in the photo, make sure it's unloaded and not pointing at your head...the idiot thing again.
Tips On Lighting Lighting is very important. Keep the sun behind you as much as possible. Available light (no flash) may give a more natural looking photograph, but shoot both with and without flash. Using flash in daylight can fill in shadows that can be a distraction. If your shot is made after sunset, flash is a must on subjects close to you. Note that the flash on a point-and-shoot camera is only effective at night for a short distance-typically 5-10 feet - important to keep in mind when you set up your shot. I always laugh when I see a stadium full of people with hundreds of flashes going off trying to photograph something a couple of hundred feet away. They've effectively illuminated the back of the person's head in front of them and ruined any chance at all of getting the shot. If you have a distant shot in a low light situation, turn off the flash. Most of today's cameras have an auto ISO feature that can automatically compensate for very low light and sometimes the effect is quite pleasing. I want to emphasize shooting with and without flash. If the subject is farther away than the effective flash range of your camera, you'll usually get a much better shot without the flash.
Tips On Composition Composition is the one thing that can ruin an otherwise perfect shot. You can have a great camera, great subject, great background, perfect lighting and then spoil it all with poor composition. You can minimize this problem if you shoot several shots and shoot them from many different angles. Keeping your eye not just on the subject, but also on what you're about to capture in the background. Try a few shots from a low angle, eye level with the subject. Experiment with both close in and wide shots being careful that you're entire subject is in the frame. If you're unsure, shoot a wider shot, as you can always crop it later. Don't forget to try vertical shots as well. Many subjects will standout better when shot from a vertical perspective rather than the standard horizontal perspective. Snap a lot of shots. The great thing about digital photography is that, since there's no film, it doesn't cost anything if you don't print them. You can delete an unwanted shot but you'll probably never get another chance to shoot the same shot again.
The hunting experience isn't just about the hunt. Don't forget to capture the Cook stirring his secret recipe chili or Old Bo stretched out beside the fire. I'll let you decide whether Old Bo is a dog or one of your hunting buddies...or both. The only bad picture is the one you didn't take.
One more tip - you already know this but you just haven't done it yet - read the camera manual. If you're one of then that thinks manuals are for sissies, then at least read the "quick start" guide. If you can't do that, then please, please find the "Fully Automatic" setting (usually a green symbol on a dial), and set it there and shoot away. If you want to really go out on a limb, find the setting that turns the flash off for those distant low light shots. If the flash is set to "On" or "Automatic", and it fires, your camera thinks that the subject is less than 10 feet away and sets the exposure accordingly. You'll ruin an opportunity to shoot a beautiful sunset.
On your next outing, pack a camera with your gear. It will give you an opportunity to share your experience with others and preserve your memories for a lifetime.
Stan Sheram, retired banker, poor journalist and worse hunter, a pretty good photographer sometimes, and owner of ScenicImage.com.
Labels: Georgia hunting, outdoor digital photography, photography
Georgia's squirrel season is approaching. It begins August 15th until February 28th. The limit is 12 per day.
