1 62 Photography for the Sportsman Naturalist 



inhabitants of our woods and fields and really 

 know them at their best ; and, in thus learning to 

 know them, our affection for them and love of 

 nature in general is bound to increase. 



As a recorder of facts concerning the home 

 life of the birds there is nothing that can equal 

 the camera, for it rarely lies ; whereas the brush 

 or pencil almost invariably does in some detail 

 and often in larger and more important points. 

 Then, too, photographs of any of the birds are 

 invaluable from a scientific standpoint. They 

 show accurately and beyond dispute points which, 

 heretofore, the artist has been forced to guess 

 at, — such as the manner in which they feed 

 their young; the various attitudes which they 

 assume when perching; and even, with some 

 birds, the manner of their flight. 



In photographing birds the breeding season is 

 by far the best time, for, at this season of the 

 year, the birds are in their best and fullest plu- 

 mage and many of them have donned, for this 

 especial season, extra finery that they do not 

 wear at any other time of the year, — as, for in- 

 stance, many of the herons; and, therefore, pic- 

 tures can be obtained of them at this time that 

 cannot be duplicated, at least for another twelve 

 months. Moreover each pair of birds are re- 

 stricted to a comparatively limited range sur- 

 rounding their nest, and one is always certain of 



