Wildlife Photography near Calgary

by Duane Starr
August 21, 2012

Great Gray Owl

I am a self taught nature photographer with no formal photography training.  I grew up in a very small town in British Columbia called Fernie.  I was always fascinated by cameras, my Dad owned a Ricohflex camera and that is the camera I started out experimenting with.  Fernie being such a small town, had no one around to ask my many questions, so I read books and mainly used the trial and error method of learning.  The school needed a photographer so I stepped up to the plate to give it a try when I was in grade 7.  They gave me a dark room for developing and all the time I needed to learn the best I could under those conditions.  I shot sports, year book entries, graduation pictures and any other events that went on at the school. I made a lot of mistakes and I hate to think of how many rolls of film I messed up. I can laugh about it now, but in the days it sometimes was terrifying. The best thing of all was when something turned out right. I look back now and the experience was worth a hundred courses.

 

 

 

Sharp-tailed Grouse

 

 

I started shooting pictures and capturing images around 1957 for my local  high school.  Became school photographer for 6 years through Jr. High School and  Sr. High School in Fernie B.C..  That is where it all started.

 

 

 

Pheasant

 

 

My camera bag includes 2 Think Tank rolling bags.  I try to take all my  equipment with me when I go out to shoot.  It's always in my car.  I use a Nikon D4 & D3s bodies & Fuji 100,  all my lens are Nikon which include 2 - 50mm f/1.8 & f/1.4, 12-24mm f/2.8, 24-70mm f/2.8,  70-200mm f2.8, 80-400mm f/4.5-5.6, 200-400mm f/4, 400mm f/2.8, 600mm f/4,  105mmf/2.8 macro, 135mm f/2.0 D,  28-300mmf/3.5-5.6,  24mm f/1.4, Tele-Converters 1.4x VII, 1.7x VII &  2.0x. VIII, Gitzo Traveler 6x monopod, Gitzo Tripod with Wimberly Head wh-200 II and a bunch of smaller misc camera pieces too numerous to list.     

 

 

Northern Hawk Owl

 

 

 

Raven and two bald eagles on fence

 

 

 

Great Horned owlets

 

 

 

 

House Finch

 

 

 

leucistic rough-legged hawk

 

 

 

Moose

 

 

Golden Eagle

 

 

 

Long-tailed Weasel

 

 

 

 

Young Grizzly bear in Kananaskis Provincial Park

 

 

 

Bald Eagle

                             
My favorite lens for shooting wildlife is the 600mm telephoto, it is absolutely my go to lens when I am out shooting wildlife.  The 400mm is supureb for low light as it is f/2.8 and both lens are sharp as a tack.  I use the 200-400mm when I am not sure what I might be getting into. It does give me a lot of flexibility.