Your Thoughts Please

[Loupey]

I just received the latest issue of National Geographic the day before yesterday (January, 07 issue) and there is a beautiful article about Hummingbirds. I was quite impressed to say the least.

Then, in the back of the magazine, it shows/describes how the photographer actually catches his specimens, places them in his SUV mobile studio next to his waiting nectar-bearing blossom, and releases the hummingbird when he is ready for the shot.

It's one thing to shoot birds near feeders, but to actually capture them?! I suppose it depends on what you're trying to accomplish with the images. And he was hired by N.G. so that makes him a PRO.

Definitely straddling the boundary in my book. At least use zoo specimens which are already accustomed to being handled.

What do you think? Am I being too sensitive/idealistic?

[Bevb]

Sensitive! not at all, i agree i think if we are honest, we all use feeders etc to lure our subjects to to get a photograph but to actually catch a wild bird and stage it seems way beyond the boundaries of nature/natural image capture, im a little surprised that they have actually disclosed this proceedure, im sure this will cause major opinion and debate.

Unbelievable.

[terryger]

merry christmas and i couldn't resist the "hummer thread" loupey!

i haven't seen the article and i will have to withhold comment until that time but as a person that has a deep respect and admiration for our hummer friends i would have to question this method.

having photographed hundreds of hummers(and very well, if i do say so myself)and viewing thousands of photos, both film and digital, i have never seen the need to "capture them" as they cooperate so well.

seems to me that the amount of time needed for capture could be spent "luring" with the same or better result.

i also know that many times in this "gotta have it now" world this is being accepeted as the norm. you also have that "i'm a human so i know best" attitude floating around.

this was taken with minimal effort and equipment far less costly that i could have justified for a ng shoot. could have had him doing tricks also had that been the order of the day. and all i needed was some food.




i have seen equal effort from loupey of this same subject.

makes you wonder what a "pro really is" and how they score ng contracts.

i'll let ya'll know

btw loupey, thank you for the consideration on the featured photo! you had more to do with it than you will ever know!:thumbsup:

happy holidays people!

[Bevb]

I think you have said and proved it all Terryger. Excellent.

Happy Holidays!

[paulnj]

Cheating and unethical in my eyes. Whatever happened to leave only footprints, take only images?

[mjs1973]

I think we need to take a closer look at this before we pass judgement. Nothing has been said about who the photographer is, or why he is taking these photos.

I posed this very same question to Mike McDowell on his birding blog this morning. I think if you read what he has to say about this, you may feel differently about what is actually taking place here. Here is a link to Mike's reply to this question.

[Loupey]

Thanks for the link, Michael. My mind is unchanged though. Mr. McDowell does a fine job being politically correct and supporting the action, to some degree, by comparing it to banding.

But for someone to be brazen enough to state a goal of capturing/photographing every hummingbird species can't be banding every specimen he's catching. That's too many species and far too few samples per species to provide any significant scientific results. I can't imagine any funding large enough to cover research of over 300 species. Besides, many of the more common species are already well known/photographed so banding can't be a priority for these species.

Anyway, scientific observation requires studying behavior by wild animals behaving within their environment.

Mr. McDowell claims that some of the images that "Dr" Luis Mazariegos are of species never before photographed. Yet Luis is able to net them. If they can be netted, they can be photographed without netting.

No, someone wanting to personally photograph every hummingbird species has either an ego issue or financial reasons (probably both).

Ironically, if Luis was not a "Dr" and simply a photographer wanting to show pretty pictures, I probably would not be so upset. But he should know better - kind of like if a respected medical doctor practices risky procedures during his off-time. I wonder how long Luis keeps the H-birds from eating before "releasing" them. Probably half starved, half dehydrated by that point.

I will send N.G. a letter as I would imagine others have already done.

[Jaedon]

Ironically, if Luis was not a "Dr" and simply a photographer wanting to show pretty pictures, I probably would not be so upset. But he should know better - kind of like if a respected medical doctor practices risky procedures during his off-time. I wonder how long Luis keeps the H-birds from eating before "releasing" them. Probably half starved, half dehydrated by that point.

If he hadn't been a Dr I don't think he would have recieved the same lack luster criticism from the blogger either. It would have been much more critical IMHO.
I agree that a Dr. should know better. What would happen to the wildlife photos genre if we all decided that capturing our subject first in order to shoot them in a controlled environment was out priority?

I believe this Dr is doing more harm than good with his methodology.

I agree with Paulnj's concise opinion.

Cheating and unethical in my eyes. Whatever happened to leave only footprints, take only images?

Best way to keep nature as is......is to LEAVE nature as is.

Jay

[AmberC]

I definitely think that he should not be capturing them to take the pictures. That seems really really wrong in my book

Whatever happened to leave only footprints, take only images?

I like that.

Amber

[dadas115]

For some reason I thought it was against the law to capture native birds in the US without a special permit (for banding for instance).

Anyway, the method does seem like cheating to me but I guess it gets the results. It certainly isn’t a method I would recommend.

Greg

[EOSThree]

I don't like the idea of captive subjects at all. Seems unethical and like cheating to me. I haven't read the article so I can't fully comment. I have always felt I need to take photos of animals in their natural habitat. Controlled environments are just cheating.

[Sushigaijin]

Most images of fossorial or secretive reptiles and amphibians are posed, controlled images. It is routine to use the "hat trick" to get snakes to pose - placing a hat on top of the snake until it calms down and curls up into a good photo opportunity, and many photographers will keep wild animals for a day or two in order for conditions to improve; nightime shots of animals found on the road are almost always lackluster. It is definately true that most reptiles are not where they are photogenic, most of them will need to be moved onto a leaf, into an area of grass, out from under the heavy canopy, or out from underneath the cover they are hiding under. Another dirty trick is to put an ectotherm into the refrigerator for a while, a snake, frog, or insect will be much easier to photograph (though not usually as colorful) at 60f than at 80f.

The practice of posting and manipulating reptile images is so widespread, that images taken in situ, meaning as the animal was found, are usually labeled as such - I know that I have labeled my in situ shots in this very forum, it didn't even occur to me that people DON'T pose their shots. Granted that birds are naturally more photogenic since they are occasionally not hiding underneath stuff, but i don't think it is that far of a stretch.

[Dylan8i]

i agree with what sushigaijin said. its not horrible to move some types of animals. however i'd personally rather not. I usually try to take them insitu, or at the most just move them a few feet to a better background. I did see that national geographic and instantly though of this forum. I however didn't see that he captured them. I think that you guys taking them in situ earns more respect however.