A Trophy weekend. large post
- This topic has 17 replies, 10 voices, and was last updated Dec 2, 2008 at 3:33 pm by
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Donned my Camo, out the door an hour before sunup
crawled through mud and water,
made like a statue for minutes at a time
cramping my thighs,
Soaked in sweat
worked very hard ensuing I stayed upwind.
Low light, high ISOs very low shutter speeds.Reward.Pricless. Its going to be hard I imagine to have this kind of day again.
Watched this guy eventualy get chased by a yote.
20 minutes stalking, slinking through mud got me to this shot
One of a few where I actually had some sun to work with albeit backlight
Got nice and close to this 10 pointer
Holy Rackman
Some were even kind enough to pose for a group Photo
John, I don’t know what’s more impressive, your pictures or the fact that you do this without a rifle at your side while doing it.
Very nice as always.
Some glorious work there John!
That one guy has a real snaggle-tooth rack, eh?
Man – I need to get back out – gonna be a while though I fear, as we’re moving very soon.
Kendal
Thanks guys.
Mark you don’t know how much I wish I had property so I could lay a food plot or Mineral soak.
Thank you for sharing those, John. They are awesome.
You must have remembered your hat! 🙂
lmao 🙂
yeah fleece Toque and neck scarf, wrap thing that doubles as a face mask so only my eyes are visible.Thats one of the hardest things I’m finding. I have to dress for freezing temps and wind chill.
If I sit pretty and use calls. I need layers and warmth
If I move around as I did Sat/Sun I work up a sweat and my base layers get soaked. As soon as I stop moving I start losing body heat and chills set in.Might want to remove your jacket before you start to move.
I always do that when I’m in the field – tie it around my waist before I start to walk. It’s saved me a lot of discomfort.
Also have been known to have 4 layers, and to start a long hike with just one or two layers on, adding after stopping.
Of course, I’m sure you know all that, but perhaps someone else doesn’t.
Nice shots john, i especially like the first one with the orange sky in the background.
Do you use any of the scentlok type products with that activated carbon? I use the scentblocker baselayers and i like them alot. They aren’t going to stop all your scent, but will cut it down when used properly. A scentlok head mask will do wonders too – i read somewhere 90% of your odor comes from your mouth and hair? I was going to reply to your other post a few days back. Maybe your already caught on to most of this stuff, but i’ll post some of my tips for you here…
1. Make sure your showering with no-scent soap/shampoo before going out. This is probalby the biggest favor you can do for yourself, it will make a huge difference in not getting winded.
2. Wash all your camo clothes/layers in one of the hunter type detergents, and then keep them in a rubbermaid tub. If you can find them, HS Scents makes “fresh earth” dryer sheets. throw a few of those in there. Also, either hang your clothes outside to dry, or dry them with those dryer sheets. Another option is to take some pine boughs, leaves, etc., and put them in the tub, after a day or two you will smell like a x-mas tree. Don’t get dressed with these clothes until you are in the field. I keep a spare piece of carpet in the truck and stand on that while i change.
3. If your frequenting the same area, the rubber knee boots will go along way towards reducing the amount fo scent you are leaving on the ground.
4. Is baiting legal in your area? I don’t bait for hunting, but i would pulll out all the stops for taking photos. A 5 gallon bucket of corn will go along ways.
FYI, Most of the guys you are seeing on the cover of Deer and Deer Hunting and other similar magazines are are taking photos of deer inside enclosures. Charlie Alsheimer has basically conditioned the deer inside his fence to his presenece, and they will allow him to walk within feet of them. And then these guys use food to get the deer in the right spot (background/foreground/lighting) for those pheonomenal pics you see on the covers. So, your off to a great start accomplishing this stuff in the wild.
Heres my deer photo… got him opening day of bow season!
Nice Buck Eric.
I use the scent killer sprays and detergents, although I havent gone so far as to use the toothpaste/breath mints. After washing in a non uv detergent I store in a plastic bag.
Clothes wise Im using Mathews latest brand.. Its called “Game hide” in what they call a “lost” pattern. Long story short its as silent as an owl in flight. You can rub it vigoursly between your hands and it wont make a peep. Its the stuff Im wearing in the other thread.
Base layers
Under armor and Polartec.
Thought about Scent Lok but I need cold protection, theres days Im out when its -30 with the wind chill. I have been looking at an all in one layering manufactorer called ‘Sitka” gear.Boots
I tend to spray down with scent killer.Baiting.
Yep, legal.
I dont have private property though and would be very problematic where I go. They are large conservation areas.
Pro no hunting = lots of Deer and me not getting shot 🙂
Cons: Other people..dog walkers, joggers etcCovers.
Thats a reality these days, don’t really have a philosophical problem with it. The “odds” of getting the perfect shots of tough to appoach wild game like big bucks, in sweet light, with great backgrounds are slim at best. Its takes sooo many hours of work with little to no certaintity just to see them, let alone align all the various factors.In order to get these shots this weekend *and* stay downwind of them, the few times the sun did poke its head out it was always strong sidelight or backlit, as the few above attest. Let alone WTs being more active around dawn and duskl. Rare is the day I get them in good light, let alone sweet front light with great BGs
🙂Great shots John !
That looks like fun stalking with a camera – you’re like the bush paparazzi !
www.dsaphoto.com
A picture is thousand words that takes less than a second while a thousand words is a picture that takes a month.
David this might sound like blasphemy but in many ways its more fun and more rewarding than enticing that big brown you’ve been watching to rise to a dry.
Sometimes you get lucky and they let you get resonably close but thats the exception. Youve really got to work at it if you want to increase your odds.
locate Does, mark their game trails, pattern them ( which routes to they take to and from the bedding areas to food sources). Then you have beat them when they have btter eyesight, better hearing and their man survival aid…their nose.
It can also be very frustrating 🙂
John.
Started the morning using grunts and Estrus Bleats. Last weekend there was some fresh snow on the ground and I found quite a few pools of urine mixed with blood. Figure the rut was just starting.Saw the Bucks in the distance (about 300 to 500 feet away) around 7:30am. They didnt seem to respond at all to a bleat so I put it away and started working towards them. Once I decided to move to them I didnt want to use a grunt or bleat lest it bust me.
by next weekend Im guessin the rut will be over so will start using rattles instead.
J
by next weekend Im guessin the rut will be over so will start using rattles instead.
J
Wow – seems a really quick rut – unless it’s been “on” for a while.
Down here it seems to, once it finally starts, go on for a long while – but it’s always triggered by a good hard cold front – and then not the first one (sometimes).
Gotta say again – really great stuff John. Love seeing those big northern deer.
Interesting to see that you said this was on a conservation area. Most of those bucks are showing signs of either serious genetic problems, lack of nutrition or maybe a little of both.
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