Wildlife Photography: Photographing Wildlife Without Disturbance? (Part 2)

This brings us back to the actual topic: How do you obtain this kind of image, one that does justice to both the forest and the animals? Certainly not by running blindly through the woods, pointing your camera like a machine gun at everything that moves. If you want to be close to the animals, you must listen to them and learn a lot from them. And that is only achieved through perseverance and patience, not overnight.

This involves many disappointing non-encounters and the art of pressing the shutter at the right moment. The goal must be to avoid disturbances, or at least to keep them to a minimum. This is one of the reasons why hunters have their high seats. On one hand, because they offer a great overview. On the other hand, because sitting quietly in a good spot during animal observation promises far more success than tramping from clearing to clearing. Indeed, the very first step onto a forest path might already have been the wrong one. And if it's just the sound of a bike being locked up, the deer 100 meters away will notice it immediately and be gone over the hills before you've even unpacked your camera. Hunters rarely set up their seats in the middle of the forest; if they do, there is a significant probability that all the animals will be startled on the footpath leading there for the rest of the day. It therefore doesn't hurt if photographers also have a regular spot.

That hunting seats are taboo is beyond question. Furthermore, the perspective from above is impractical for photos anyway. You aren't allowed to enter them without permission regardless. Not even just to have a snack. The risk of injury must not be underestimated! The ideal scenario—and we shouldn't delude ourselves here—is visiting a territory after prior arrangement with perhaps a friendly hunter or landowner. Anything else will ultimately only result in getting into trouble, whether justified or not. Additionally, there are animals that may be hunted year-round. This means live rounds could be fired while you are lying somewhere in the undergrowth with your camera. Without knowing the hunters, this could, in the worst case, become extremely dangerous.

Despite all the negative aspects I have pointed out, I want my text to end on a positive note: disturbance-free wildlife photography is definitely possible, with certain limitations. At least if it is acknowledged that everyone else, including hunters, also has to work with compromises. Because no matter what humans do, we rarely do it better. We always intervene somewhere. The key is to engage with nature, the animals, and their behavior. Open communication is the right way forward here, and that applies to hunters, foresters, and photographers alike.