234 Photography for the Sportsman Naturalist 



dropped him into an open bag, and my first 

 ' model ' was captured. 



" Selecting an open spot the next day, I spread 

 out a large piece of canvas in order to get a clear, 

 smooth background. I set the shutter of the 

 camera and turned the focussing scale down to 

 two feet, as I had to work at that distance to get 

 a picture large enough to be of any value. I then 

 opened the bag and dumped Mr. Rattler out upon 

 the canvas. At this unceremonious treatment he 

 coiled up for a fight and began rattling. Hastily 

 grabbing up my camera I tried to take a photo- 

 graph of him, when he struck the camera front, 

 breaking one fang, as I afterward discovered. 

 This negative was a blur, for I pressed the but- 

 ton with a convulsive grip. The next was the 

 same ; in fact, the entire set was a failure, partly 

 from lack of knowlege of how to handle a rattle- 

 snake and partly from inexperience with a camera. 

 The many reasons of failure are well known to 

 those who have photographed animals of any 

 kind. 



" After repeated trials with different specimens, 

 I found it not only took infinite time and patience 

 to get a characteristic pose that showed the best 

 form of coil for striking, but that I had to 

 approach with a steady, easy motion till I got up 

 to the right distance. ... I have now been study- 

 ing rattlesnakes for several years, and in the sum- 



