A Lensman’s Lament

Despite the assuming title here, I’m not any kind of photographer–but I sure do like taking pictures! There’s nothing like getting out there in nature early in the morning, when my camera and I are both fully charged. However, if you’ve ever snapped a few yourself, you know about the disappointments and failures of the endeavor. Here are four examples of things that make me go grrr when taking wildlife pics:

The subjects won’t cooperate. No matter how hard you try to get a group of anything to conform to the shot, there’s always that one screwing it up at the last second.

Animal butts. I swear that three-quarters of my wildlife photos are of their back ends as they flee. In their defense, some butts are almost cute, or at least interesting like this mama lynx’s. It looks somewhat like a lions–who’s she trying to kid?

Too damn ugly! Some creatures, like these vultures, just aren’t picturesque no matter what filters or settings I use. People don’t like to look at them.

Out of focus. There’s nothing worse than when you think you’ve captured a great moment in nature only to get home and find that your photo is useless garbage.

In truth, these are all minor annoyances for the most part, and are nothing compared to the joy and peace of mind I get by just being out in the woods with my camera.

–Photos by me

Let’s Take a Ride

People often ask me where I get all my nature photos, so I thought I’d show you. Hop in with me, and let’s take a quick spin around the Lake of the Woods area in Minnesota, where I live.

First and foremost, are the farmlands and lakes. With 10,000 lakes in Minnesota, this is a common sight. It’s a perfect ecosystem for the migrating birds that nest here.

We also have woodlands adjacent to the fields of crops, and that makes a great place for deer. They stay in the woods most of the day and gather in the fields overnight. Needless to say, there are no starving deer around here.

We also have quite a few marshes scattered here and there. Call them wetlands, lowlands, or just plain swamps, these areas are the perfect ecosystem for birds, especially songbirds. The problem is you can’t just walk out in one, and that’s where the zoom lens comes in handy.

Finally, there’s the big bad bog. This ecosystem is totally alien to all the others. I was here the other day and discovered something new: the funnel spiders build their webs directly over the carnivorous pitcher plants in a symbiotic relationship. The intoxicating aroma of the nectar in the pitcher plants wafts up through the web, attracting all kinds of insects, which the spider then makes short work of. In return, the pitchers get a steady flow of “crumbs” from the spider.

Isn’t life amazing and wonderful? Thanks for riding along.

–photos by me