I'm no expert photographer, but after looking at some of the gallery, I'd like to help with some basics. First, DO NOT take pictures on the tailgate of the truck, and pay attention to what is in the background of your photo. You want to make the memory of your hunt the best you can. It's always best to take the pictures of the animal in the field with NATURAL surroundings. Next, make sure there is no BLOOD in the picture. I carry a big papertowel like you buy at the carwash and keep it handy for pictures to wipe the mouth and any access blood dripping from the animal. If you can't stop the blood from the wound in the picture, feel free to place a rock or a small branch or even a pulled up clump of grass in front of it while trying to not let it look unnatural. No hanging TONGUES! Tuck the tongue inside the mouth. If it's a hog or an animal with the teeth being it's feature, if you can, prop a small stick in it's mouth as far back as possible so not to interfere with the photo, allowing the viewer to see the teeth. If a hogs mouth is locked up, forget it! Do this as soon as you find the hog, javelina or coyote before you drag it out in case it wants to lock up on the way out. Next, prop your animal for best feature in the picture. On hogs and such, you may even want to place the head on a log or rock to raise it from the grass. Maybe even place the whole animal on a downed tree. GRASS- When you have your animal propped, go to the angle of where the picture will be snapped and pick or pull up any grass blades that would be in the way of the shot. Check for blood that has dripped while working on the set up. Move it or cover it with fresh dirt or rocks. Different poses are better for different species. For instance, an anelope looks best if the nose is straight down in the dirt and the horns are straight up. Deer look best with the head up and the least amount of hands on it or the horns. I use rocks and logs behind the animal to help pro it like I want it. Some animals you may even want to prop the ears forward using small sticks behind the ears that can't be seen in the view of the camera. Now, The person and the weapon. The weapon is important to tell the story. The hunter. The hunter always looks best behind the animal. Hint- The further back the human is, the bigger the animal looks. Optical illusion. Next, by now, your almost ready. Make sure to check shadows while your setting this up. You want the shadow behind the feature, not to the side or in front of. Make sure the hunters hat is tipped back just enough so you can see their face and especially the big smile. If your the photographer, coach the hunter to smile and tell them if the hat or anything else is not right for the picture because they dp not have a mirror to look in. If there is no shadow and it's evening, always use the flash weather you think you need it or not. Always take at least 5 photos because they always don't turn out exactly like you think they should. I carry a throw away 800 speed film camera with me. This way, if I loose it, I've only lost that roll and not some expensive camera and my photos. 800 speed is quicker so low light pictures come out better. Same price as 400 speed, so may as well buy the better of the two.

A Family that Hunts together, stays together. (unless they leave me home!)