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 By Joe and Mary Ann McDonald 
For the next hour, this blue-clad photographer made the lives and work of several shooters miserable as he roamed through our backgrounds, attempting, we guess, to get into position. He was the only shooter on the side of the river where the elk herd congregated, free from human interference but usually well within sight and camera range of any photographer. His maverick act not only ruined the efforts of every other photographer who had honored this unspoken 'no photographer zone' but it also put him in danger, for several rut-crazed bulls were about, chasing cows and intimidating one another in their efforts to secure their autumn harem. I can't say this type of obnoxious and irresponsible behavior is becoming any more frequent, but with the growing number of photographers in the field this type of action has become a more serious and important issue. Sure, this man severely interfered with the work of many others, but more importantly, had he been injured — a real possibility in that environment — his actions could have impacted upon the freedom and access other, more considerate photographers, enjoyed. National parks like Yellowstone, where this incident occurred, are managed for both wildlife and people, and if the people don't obey the rules or use common sense, bureaucratic regulations will make sure that they do. And believe me, we don't want that! Nature photography ethics take many forms, and we'd like to address several of these in this article. Let's consider human-human ethics and encounters first, for unless you only shoot in the backcountry, far from any road or fellow photographer, you will more than likely be sharing your subject with other shooters. If you're part of a photo tour or workshop, that's almost a given, yet some folks seem vague about the rules of the game. In a nutshell, when shooting with others, cooperation and consideration should be the norm. Walk behind, not in front of, other shooters if you change position. Consider the lengths of lenses you, and those around you, are using. If you have a short focal length and others are using long telephotos, you might be in others' way if you attempt to move closer. Sometimes you won't be, as a big telephoto has a narrow angle of view and it's often possible for folks to shoot right past you without interference. To be sure, ask your co-shooters for permission to move closer, and be prepared to abandon your position if, indeed, you find yourself in their way. Likewise, if you're using a long lens and everyone around you is using short lenses, conflicts might arise simply because the group, moving together as a unit, forgets that someone else is behind them. For cooperative subjects that permit a close approach, long lenses can be a detriment, as they require you being further back than short lenses do. It's pretty unreasonable to expect an entire group to orchestrate their actions for your convenience, especially if you have a shorter lens you, too, could use. Actually, we often do use our longest lenses when shooting tight, dramatic portraits, but we're careful to take the outside edge in a group so that we can back off from the side, where no one in front can get into our way. Sometimes, when there is a limited area of shooting, folks cooperate by arranging themselves so that short-lensed shooters are up front and low, while long-lensed shooters stand behind them with their tripods at full extension. When shooting with a group, we've found it especially important to make sure everyone approaches a subject at the same time and at the same working distance if the subject requires it. For example, if we're shooting a landscape, we'll start at a maximum distance first, then, collectively, move closer. In this way, photographers are not bothered by someone who might otherwise rush in for a close-up and get in the way of everyone else behind. Likewise, with wildlife, when one person rushes forward, others may have no opportunity if that person frightens off the game. Had everyone held back and moved in slowly, it's possible that the animal would have habituated to their presence and stayed, and everyone would have benefited. Additionally, when everyone practices restraint, a race atmosphere doesn't develop as others vow to beat the other guy next time to get into position for their shot. This can escalate, if unchecked, into real chaos. This type of cooperation doesn't just apply to group shoots. The same type of rivalry or competition can arise amongst strangers, and can be curtailed if someone simply takes charge, suggesting cooperation and group movement. We've found that most shooters appreciate this cooperation, when it's required, to insure that everyone gets their shots. On safaris and tours involving vehicles, group cooperation becomes more impersonal and thus more difficult, but it is equally important. One of our best mating lion sequences was ruined when an unthinking driver pulled directly behind the lions we were shooting. Their butt-end view ruined our head-on shot, but when our driver tried to wave them off they laughed and shouted obscenities. It wasn't a pleasant next few minutes in the Mara! Usually, safari drivers are courteous and aware of others, and make every effort to stay out of each other's way. Some drivers will, however, push the envelope when pressured — or in their desire to please and earn a bigger tip — so it's important for you to keep those guys in check if it is required. Watch out for the other guy; don't be too focused on your shots. While pushing forward, or acting in an irresponsible or uncaring way, can impact upon other shooters, far more important is the impact such behavior can have upon the wildlife you're filming. The welfare of your wildlife subject must come first. Nothing you do should adversely affect your subject. The doctor's edict, "Do no harm," should be uppermost in your mind when working with wildlife. With some species, poor behavior on a photographer's part can be dangerous. Too often, it seems, people assume that habituated animals, be they elk, moose, bighorn sheep, or bison, are tame; however, they are wild and are potentially quite dangerous. An elk, moose, or bison can easily toss a man yards into the air with an effortless scoop of their antlers or horns, or skewer you, lethally, if you've really run out of luck. We know of one photographer who had his hip broken when one of a trio of fighting big horns crashed into him. In the backcountry in late fall, a crippling injury like this could be fatal. Sometimes, accidents like the one with the big horn arise simply because a photographer is too close at a given moment. Believe me, that's easy to do, especially with some species, like big horns, that often pay a photographer no heed. While long lenses can provide great close-ups, better or at least different shots result when a photographer can be close enough to incorporate a large image size for the subject and background habitat. Usually, that requires lenses ranging from wide angle to medium telephoto. That being so, the question must be asked, how close is too close? That's a difficult question to answer, but often the animals themselves provide the answer. Some animals seem completely habituated to people and move or forage about within feet of a human should they have the need. Others are tolerant, but wary, and others show no patience for man and getting close isn't even an option. We like to stress the common sense component to this question. Animals often let you know through their behavior when you are too close, or approaching the point where they're uncomfortable. This point, often referred to as the fight or flight zone, evidences itself by changes in your subject's behavior. It may stop feeding, or change direction, or stand and stare. More obvious, and frightening clues, may include an animal snorting, pawing, or growling. We love to work close to animals, but only when we can do so without stressing our subjects. To do so may require patience, as we let our subjects feed and move about until they work within closer range of us. With large mammals, our working distance varies according to the subject - we are acutely aware of the potential danger these animals pose. With small mammals, danger usually isn't the issue. Instead, our concern lies with not disrupting the animals' behavior. Again, our working distance and our choice of lenses differ with each subject and circumstance, but we generally start off at a distance, photograph and observe, and then make a decision as to whether we can move closer. Birds usually pose few threats to humans, although eagles, hawks, owls, jaegers, skuas, and a few other species can be extremely aggressive and dangerous around their nests. While most tour and workshop groups have few opportunities for working nests, individual photographers often do. Personally, we do not advocate bird nest photography. Most species have been shot and shot again, and frankly the risk involved to the subject isn't worth the photograph. Fortunately, though, in the United States there are several locales where stress-free nesting shots are indeed possible, and often actually easy to do, like the heron rookeries at Venice and at St. Augustine, Florida. There are osprey and eagle nests in Florida, tern colonies in New Jersey, and probably a dozen other locales where scores of photographers can line up at a safe distance without interfering with the birds. But it is the unhabituated birds we're most concerned about, and working nests of these birds can be extremely harmful. Birds that are stressed at the nest, or who have their nests exposed for photography (a terrible practice!), may abandon their young. Mammals at their dens may do likewise, or may move their young to another location. In doing so, they may expose their young to predators, or they may utilize a den site less favorable than the one you caused them to evacuate. Are your images worth this price? We don't think so. Great bird photographs are certainly possible away from the nest. Watch for favorite song posts or perches, or lookout spots for feeding. Feeding areas and congregating sites are other great places to shoot, but again, the issue must be, how close can you, how close should you, get? Some photographers advocate moving in until the bird flies off. Although there may be little harm in causing a bird to fly, we'd rather not, but that's a tough call to make in suggesting how close one should attempt to approach. Generally, birds show some sort of nervousness before they fly and when we see that behavior we stop, or back off. Mary and I do a lot of reptile, amphibian, insect, and spider photography, too, and some of these subjects are extremely hard to find. While we most prefer to spot and photograph an animal as we see it, with these elusive, reclusive critters we're sometimes required to hunt for them by lifting up logs, rocks, or pieces of wood. Whenever we do so, we always make sure that we place the shelter back in exactly the same position as we had originally found it. Nothing so enrages us as seeing where a snake collector has mowed through an area, overturning rocks and logs and leaving them upturned as he seeks specimens. The world beneath a rock is its own micro habitat, as necessary to a salamander as a pond is to a swan. Respect that! Ideally, when you're finished shooting any wildlife subject, you should be able to leave the animal as you found it. That not only applies to small reptiles and spiders, it also applies to egrets and elk as well. If you 
moved in quietly and slowly so as to not spook your subject for close
photographs, you should take just as much time and deliberation to back out
when you are finished. It is a disservice to other photographers to
frighten an animal off once you're done shooting, and a terrible betrayal of
an animal's trust.Wildlife and nature photography are two of the fastest growing outdoor pursuits, second only to bird-watching in popularity. With ever increasing numbers of shooters afield, all of us must play our own responsible role to make our love and avocation pleasant for one another and safe for the subjects that we film.
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Joseph Van Os Photo Safaris, Inc. P.O. Box 655, Vashon Island, Washington USA 98070 Phone: (206) 463-5383 Fax: (206) 463-5484 Email: info@photosafaris.com Copyright © 2008, Joseph Van Os Photo Safaris, Inc. |