African Outfitter is an independent international bimonthly publication promoting
fair hunting and ethical business practices within the hunting industry.
From a hunting perspective, the preservation of biodiversity on the
African continent is the first and foremost priority. The emphasis
is however also on the sustainable utilisation of wildlife.

African Outfitter Back Issues: CONTENTS - February / March 2007 - (Vol 2/2)

Capturing hunting memories... - Hilton Gary Sanders

A trophy hunt is the accumulation of much preparation on the part of all concerned; the client, outfitter, PH, etc., as well as a reasonable amount of hard-earned cash.

Once the hunt has come and gone, it is the mounted trophy and photographs which bring the memories of the experience rushing back – everything from sounds, scents, and sights to the thorn-etched lines that lace their way across one's arms. A virtual flood of senses flow through and over one's mind – this is the essence of trophy hunting!

Much has been written on the subject of the field preparation of trophies and the art of taxidermy, thus ensuring that our "once in a lifetime" trophies are perfectly immortalised. Even ruined mounts can be improved by the use of another cape and the artistry of a skilled taxidermist.

However, once a trophy animal hits the skinning shed or is caped out in the field, the opportunity to take photographs of your prize trophy animal is lost. Taking photographs that do the trophy justice is an exercise that is often overlooked in the field. This results in disappointment and frustration for both the client and the outfitter.

In this article, I am not going to deal with the ins and outs of what cameras to use, film speeds, lighting, etc., the reason being that most of the photographs one sees are of reasonable "optic quality". However, the composition of these photographs – the positioning of the trophy in relation to the hunter – is often poor and leaves a bad impression when viewed at a later stage.

Badly composed photographs are entirely unnecessary and can be avoided by following a few basic principles. In this article I am going to analyse a series of photographs, giving both the pros and cons of each photo, from a composition point of view and finish off with a step by step "how to" guide to help you improve the composition of your photographs.

Photo A
Pros:

The general body position of this blue wildebeest is good, with its legs holding the body in an upright position.

The head has been elevated and the horns are silhouetted.

The blood has been washed off of the animal's flank. Blood and gore in trophy photographs are not in good taste.

Cons:

Photo A

The tongue of the animal is visible – rather push it back in the mouth or cut it off.

There is blood all over the muzzle – this should be washed off.

The shoulder and face of the client on the left interfere with the silhouette of the horns.

The head of the client on the left is higher than the horns – this detracts from the trophy.

The hat of the client on the left has cast a shadow over his face.

The rifle's barrel protrudes into the photo – it has no place being there.

The animal's rump has been cut out of the photo.

Photo B
Pros:

As in Photo A, the horns of this old gemsbuck are beautifully silhouetted.

Cons:

The animal appears to be sliding from right to left, down the hill – set the animal up in as natural a pose as possible.

The rifle is perched precariously against the animal's side – this is not safe! The rifle also detracts from the trophy and is "competing for sky".

The client's face is shadowed by his cap. I personally prefer clients not to wear hats in photographs.

The base of the horns should be level. The horns themselves are often different lengths. However, if the horn-bases are level, the animal's face will not appear to lean to one or the other side.

The horns are leaning away from the camera lens; this makes the horns look shorter than they are.

The client's body is interfering with the animal's outline to a great extent.

The grass needed to be cut or trampled down so as to allow for a clear view of the trophy and client.

Had the animal been positioned correctly, there would not have been shadows on the left half of its face

Photo C
Pros:

The general body position is good.

Cons:

This springbuck should have been placed in full sunlight to show the typical "barred" colouration on its flanks.

The client should not be holding the horns – this detracts from the trophy, especially on smaller antelope.

The client should not be positioned behind the trophy as the horns are lost on the background of his camo jacket.

The photographer would have done well to lie down in order to silhouette the head and horns.

The rifle draws one's eyes away from the trophy and unbalances the composition. If anything, the rifle should have been laid in front of the animal on a bipod in the closed position.

Photo D
Pros:

This impressive common reedbuck has been well positioned – the head and horns are well silhouetted.

The head has been turned slightly to the left, thus allowing the length and curl of the horns to be captured in one photo. This is a good point to remember when photographing the various reedbuck, waterbuck and hartebeest families.

Both the eyes and nose have been moistened; this brings life to the photo.

The tail has been positioned to show the characteristic white "flash" often seen on fleeing animals.

Cons:

The client is sitting a tad too high in relation to the trophy, detracting from the horns and "competing for sky".

A little more attention should have been paid to the stray pieces of grass in front of the trophy. Otherwise, this photo is pleasing.

Photo E
Pros:

Here, the oribi has deliberately been positioned on top of an anthill. Small animals are made more visible when placed in elevated positions.

The way that this animal has been positioned, highlights the characteristic black tail and white underside. Both of these features would, in all probability, have been lost had the animal been photographed on the ground and from the side. I have found that this type of positioning works well when photographing waterbuck and red hartebeest.

The horns are nicely silhouetted.

Cons:

The client would have been better positioned if he had sat lower down and not "towered" over the oribi.

More care should have been taken in the washing off of the blood on the animal's flank. The coat's colouring would have been enhanced had this been done.

Photo F
I have included this "out of the box" photo to emphasize the fact that one needs to be imaginative and creative when taking trophy photographs. It is not a case of "one size fits all", as I have shown with photos D & E.

In this photo, French father and son clients each bagged a gemsbuck within two hours of each other. The photograph captured the highlight of their safari in a double pose. This is one of their most treasured hunting memories.

To sum up what I have gone through in this article, here are the basic steps to be taken when photographing a client and his trophy:

1) Wash all the blood off of the animal.

2) Are there any characteristics specific to this species that should be considered? For example, the waterbuck has a white ring on its rump and horns that curve forward. How will I position the animal so that I can show off these characteristics in the photo?

3) Is there any unsightly bullet damage that could detract from the photo? This needs to be taken into consideration when setting the animal up. This point and washing off any blood on the animal are very important, especially to avoid any unwanted criticism of our sport and livelihoods. Whilst on this point, I would like to mention that we, at all times, need to treat the trophies with respect, especially when we are photographing them.

Some time ago I picked up a magazine off the shelf and on the back page was a photograph of a bow-hunted elephant, with the hunter standing on top of the animal. He was holding his bow above his head as if doing a war dance. It is totally unacceptable to take this type of photograph, let alone publish it in a magazine. All the great hunter tribes of old, no matter on which continent they lived, treated all of the animals they hunted with respect due to the fact that the hunted paid the highest price – life.

4) Always look for a spot that will allow you to set up the animal in good light. Will the horns be silhouetted or obscured by the backdrop? Horns can look remarkably like sticks and branches when photographed against woody bush or a bunch of dark coloured saplings. Ask yourself these questions before dragging the animal around from spot to spot.

5) Once you have chosen a spot that will facilitate the taking of good photographs, move the animal there and set it up for the photographing session. If at this point in time you are thinking to yourself that this is too much like hard work, you need to ask yourself the following question. How much effort went into the harvesting of the trophy?

6) When positioning the animal (here I am referring to antelope species), firstly lie the animal on its side on the spot that you have chosen to take the photographs. Tuck the front legs in along its chest and fold the back legs in along the belly. Then, holding the legs in position, roll the animal onto its chest. The legs are then spread out slightly from the body. This is generally all that is needed to balance the trophy's body. Rocks or sticks can be used to help prop the animal up from behind, which is out of the view of the camera.

7) The grass, other plant material and stones now need to be trampled down, trimmed or cleared away to ensure that there is nothing to detract or obscure the animal's body. Last minute cleaning off of blood etc. can be done at this time. I have found that moistening the nose and eyes enhances the trophy's features in the photo.

8) Position the head to show off the horns to their best advantage and set it there. The client can place his hand under the jaw or you can place the nose on the ground and steady the head with stones or sticks, try to keep them out of view of the camera. Make sure that the tongue is not protruding from the mouth.

Remember to ensure that the horn bases are level/parallel with the ground; this will prevent the head from leaning to one or the other side. Make sure that the horns are not leaning towards or away from the camera – you don't want to lose their length!

9) Position your client behind or next to the animal. Ensure that the client's head does not "compete for sky" with the trophy! Make sure that the horns do not cast a shadow on your client's face and that his hat (if he is wearing one) does not obscure his face or cover it in shadow. Decide where to place the weapon so that it does not detract from the trophy.

10) Switch your camera on and start shooting film. Take photos from several different angles and elevations, and especially from a low angle (lying down). Be creative and you will be pleasantly surprised. Your clients will be pleased with the photographs that have captured their special memories.