GED
Loc: North central Pa
Dave plant yourself some apple trees and wild grape vines in an area that gets nice light at the times you would like to photograph keep in mind hard shadows from the surroundings. Decide before planting where you would like to have different movable blind locations ( for different backgrounds) and you will have a plethora of wildlife to photograph. It won't be long when putting out food will be illegal in Pa, supposedly because of CWD.
Davethehiker wrote:
I live on an isolated hill top surrounded hundreds of acres of woods and farms. I have cut a long trail into the woods that I frequently walk with a camera in my hands. The deer can hear me coming and run away from me. I have never got a good picture of a deer while walking my trail. I have gotten a few good shot when the deer come near my house.
To increase my odds of getting a good deer photo I put up a deer feeder yesterday. There is 40 pounds of feed corn with molasses in that thing. I have a 600mm f/4 lens that I can use in the house and point it out a window. I have been looking out the widow looking for wildlife to discover the feeder. Nothing yet:
I live on an isolated hill top surrounded hundreds... (
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I'm sure someone has suggested this already (I've not read all of the responses) ... but planting rose bushes near your house will bring them right in! :o ;-) I have ornamentals around our garden and we see deer on a daily basis. I have a love-hate relationship with them. Some plants they don't touch ... others need a fence or protection if one wants to see them ever thrive and bloom. :-/ (We now have an ugly fence in front of the rose bed.)
That could work, but you will not necessarily get deer in a natural setting or pose. As some have said, feeding deer is generally against the law.
Pick a spot in the woods, wear some kind of camo gear or a ghilly suit and wait patiently - with a silent camera.
rehess
Loc: South Bend, Indiana, USA
jerryc41 wrote:
That could work, but you will not necessarily get deer in a natural setting or pose. As some have said, feeding deer is generally against the law.
Pick a spot in the woods, wear some kind of camo gear or a ghilly suit and wait patiently - with a silent camera.
It all depends on your aspirations.
The deer around here don't have to be 'fed';
they feed themselves, and sometimes that is very interesting {at least to some of us}
Dave, come east to Valley Forge National Park - no shortage of deer.
Edia
Loc: Central New Jersey
My problem is not attracting deer, but getting them to eat someone else's plants. In my part of New Jersey, deer are everywhere. Over the years, I've hit four deer with my car. NJ only allows hunting with shot gun, bow and black powder. My neighbor has a blind for bow hunting. Every few days, deer come walking across my front lawn. Getting good photos of them is easy and I have taken a bunch of them from my front porch.
Now he is just deliberatly making a face at you! LOL
Back off your camera and set up a trail cam; they work great!
You can buy a cheap popup ground blind or build you a ground blind. Best if you can locate it downwind from your most common wind direction.
Buy a bag of shelled corn and dribble a trail of corn from the trail you walk on towards the feeder. We used to run three of four corn trails each time we put out a new feeder back in Alabama. Our feeders held 600 to 800 pounds of feed, mostly Purina Deer Chow.
Wow! I've never seen a wonky antler like that one. :o
Davethehiker wrote:
I live on an isolated hill top surrounded hundreds of acres of woods and farms. I have cut a long trail into the woods that I frequently walk with a camera in my hands. The deer can hear me coming and run away from me. I have never got a good picture of a deer while walking my trail. I have gotten a few good shot when the deer come near my house.
To increase my odds of getting a good deer photo I put up a deer feeder yesterday. There is 40 pounds of feed corn with molasses in that thing. I have a 600mm f/4 lens that I can use in the house and point it out a window. I have been looking out the widow looking for wildlife to discover the feeder. Nothing yet:
I live on an isolated hill top surrounded hundreds... (
show quote)
Isolated or not, you may have much bigger issues:
https://www.pennlive.com/life/2019/07/pennsylvania-game-commission-targets-deer-and-turkey-feeding.html
Thank you for that link. I had no idea that it was potentially dangerous to the animals, or that the state was actively trying to prevent it. It seems a bit silly when the deer can be seen congregating in large numbers eating corn in farmers fields. I'm no expert in this field and will cease this activity.
The deer must have already found the above computer link, because they are avoiding my feeder completely.
I'll also let the folk at the local feed store that have big piles of bags full of deer feed, know that they should not sell deer corn.
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