NATURE PICTURES. 515 



PIIOTOGRAPHlNf} WILD ANIMALS. 



Turning- now from pictures of birds to pictures of animals, wo find 

 that, owing to tlie difficulty of obtaining good photographs, drawings 

 are still used almost exclusive^. The field for camera work here is 

 enormous, but unfortunateh^ the difficulties are so numerous and over- 

 whelming that good results are obtainable only after ahiiost endless 

 labor, and l)ut few can give the necessary time. Of course this refers 

 to animals in their wild state, ])ut there is another field that has been 

 as yet only lightly touched, and that is photographing animals that are 

 in captivity. This is a task that is comparatively easy; ])ut if really 

 good pictures are desired, it will not l)e found quite as simple as one 

 might believe. 



The three essential things to he. considered are: First, th(> pose of the 

 animal. This is extremely important, as a position should be chosen 

 that is characteristic of the species. Secondly, the arrangement of the 

 surroundings. A bad foreground will surely ruin a picture; so, also, 

 will the introduction of a fence or any similar oliject in the back- 

 ground, and the greatest attention should be given to the composition 

 as a Avhole. Thirdly, the light. This is important, for it will make or 

 mar the picture. When a very short exposure is given, the fewer 

 shadows there are the l^etter will be the result; but in cases where an 

 ample exposure is possible, the light may be arranged entirely with 

 regard to the pictorial effect. It will ))e readily seen that the mere 

 snapshot has no more place here than it has in live-bird photography. 

 A good picture, whether made with a camera or the pencil, is the result 

 of study and careful arrangement, and only in very rare cases is it the 

 result of chance. The several photographs of prairie dogs here shown 

 were made in the National Zoological Park (Washington), ])ut, so far 

 as the backgrounds and surroundings are concerned, they might well 

 have been taken on the great prairies of the West. 



Up to the present time my experience in photographing wild animals 

 in their native haunts has been very limited. The animal to which I 

 have devoted the greatest time is the Canadian porcupine. For nearly 

 two weeks I stayed in the Adirondacks where they are abundant, and 

 during that time 1 made photogi-aphs of these prickly fellows in nearly 

 every possible position -on the ground, in trees, and in the water. 



The accompanying photograph of the woodchucks is a fairly lucky 

 shot. Unfortunately the animals' feet are nearly hidden by the light 

 white sand excavated from the l)urrows; but one must overlook such 

 small defects in pictures that are so difficult to obtain. This photo- 

 graph was taken while I was looking for porcupines in the Adiron- 

 dacks. 



The picture of Mrs. Mouse (white footed) and Iht lanuly is another 



of the lucky shots, so few and far between. 



