Acknowledgments

I want to thank my best friend and wife, Barbara who has been my partner in life and business since the late eighties. Without her help, I doubt I would have ever enjoyed the success that has come my way. Together we have traveled to remote corners of the world photographing as a team. It’s been a wonderful life, better than I could have imagined. While I wrote this book, she helped me every step of the way. Her ability to locate my silly mistakes and her suggestions for content were invaluable. Half of the photos in this book are hers too. I thought about writing this book to include her more using we and our, but the editors decided that would make the text a bit “clunky” to read.

We wish to thank our parents and especially our mothers for putting up with all the mischief young naturalists heaped upon them. My mother, Donna suffered through countless wild pets which included red-tailed hawks, crows, raccoons, and “herds” of chipmunks in the basement.

Barbara’s mother Mary Ann endured similar animal misadventures. Since she had a small farm, it seemed only natural that all lost animals should live there so Barbara brought them home. She had an assortment of raccoons and skunks for pets, in addition to all of the barnyard animals.

I thank Larry West and John Shaw who changed my life when I attended their weekend nature photography workshop in the mid-seventies while in college. I thought I was a decent nature photographer, but when I saw their images, I knew that not only were their photos better than mine, but I didn’t even know you could shoot photos that good. I have strived to be the best nature photographer I could be ever since.

I want to thank a few kind folks who encouraged me to pursue writing a nature photography book. My heart goes out to Peter Burian who hired me to write a number of magazine articles. He’s a wonderful writer and excellent photographer in his own right who always encouraged me to pursue book projects. He was also the content editor for this book who helped me organize things better and tighten up the text. Ian Adams is a superb landscape photographer from Ohio who has always been willing to answer any question I might have, especially in regards to large format photography. I was fortunate to meet Tony Sweet while conducting seminars on the East Coast in 2005. He was surprised I had not written a book and encouraged me to pursue it. I think his comments along with encouragement from my wife at that time finally moved me into action. I spent the next 2 weeks working hard on a detailed book proposal and mailed it off which led to this book.

I confess that I am a book lover. Give me a cup of gourmet coffee and a new book and I am as happy as can be. I literally own hundreds of fine books so it was exciting to create this book.

I want to thank the many thousands of students who have attended my nature photography programs over the years. Their probing questions helped me enormously in understanding many facets of nature photography. Teaching has been a wonderful win-win situation for all of us. For them I write this book.

Many people have helped me over the years. At the risk of leaving out some who are most deserving of my gratitude, I do wish to highlight a few. Helen Longest-Saccone hired me to write a column for Nature Photographer Magazine when it first began more than a decade ago. Writing these columns has allowed me to share the things I discover about nature photography with others. Helen has always been most supportive and allows me to write about anything I want to. Teaching field workshops has been most enjoyable. In 1988, I began teaching field workshops in Michigan’s beautiful Upper Peninsula. The workshop is based at the Timber Ridge Motel and Lodge. I wish to thank the owners for putting up with all the changes I made to their lodge every time we conduct programs there. It has been and continues to be a wonderful experience working with Mike, Mary Sue, Janice, and Terry Nolan. I appreciate Bill Howell for hiring me to lead photo tours in Yellowstone National Park for the Holiday Inn Sunspree Resort Hotel. Yellowstone park ranger Dennis Young and Denise Herman have been helpful pointing out new photo opportunities such as the bobcat during our winter tours for many seasons. Pam Hawkins helped Barbara enormously with PhotoShop early on when she was first getting into it. With Pam’s patient help, Barbara was able to conquer the basics of making prints so she could move ahead. Early in my career, Alan Charnley and Rod Planck helped enormously in developing new photographic techniques while joining me on photo trips.

Hummingbirds are an important part of our lives. We wish to express our appreciation to Hans and Cindy Koch for allowing us to conduct hummingbird photo workshops at their gorgeous guest ranch in the mountains of Southeastern British Columbia.

David Blanton hired me in the early eighties to lead foreign photo tours for Voyagers International. Although it has been bought out by International Expeditions, we led numerous photo tours to Kenya, Tanzania, Galapagos, Antarctica, and the Falkland Islands for David. While we don’t travel as much anymore, we continue to lead a terrific photo tour to Kenya every year for International Expeditions. The staff at International Expeditions (especially Kim Guth) has been superb.

We found this bobcat feeding on the remains of an elk thanks to a tip by Denise Herman, our friend and naturalist in Yellowstone.

Michele Smith, our office manager, deserves special thanks for putting up with our hectic trip schedule. She and her husband Shay have helped us in numerous ways aside from the office work such as putting shoes on our horses and baby sitting them when we go on long business trips.

Finally, we wish to express our profound gratitude for the faith that the staff at Focal Press had in us and this book. They have been patient and helpful with this first-time book writer who had to learn the process of writing a book. Always cheerful Valerie Geary nudged me along in a most gentle way to keep things on schedule.