Leaf-mimicking katydid
A leaf-mimicking katydid from Jatun Sacha reserve, Ecuador.
Several factors conspired on my trip to this reserve which led to more capture-releases, stressed animals and ultimately deaths than average. None of the following excuses are acceptable, but they are common, speak to a mindset, and a normalization of casualties ie. habituation. This is especially true in that grey area where research and photography overlap.
First was an abundance of arthropod life, much more than I had seen elsewhere, 2) the availability of research facilities and equipment like light traps which increased yields 1000 fold, 3) Wildlife found especially close to the cabins, allowing for assembly-lining of white background shots, therefore holding species for overly long as the queues began to back up, 4) The presence of other biologists which shared their subjects and thus increased the number of subjects (especially rare and interesting ones) still further. Essentially it was an oversupply, and I was too gluttonous too stop and consider. Rather than limiting the number and trying to photograph fewer and with better standards and care, I tried to do too much. This is a common theme, especially in insect, and reptile and amphibian photography, where both huge numbers and casualties (to a certain extent) are normal and treated cavalierly. When operating within this closed system, especially with others that bear the same mindset, it can become a negative cycle of reinforcement. Obviously I'm not proud of this behaviour, but it took retrospect to even see that what I was doing was wrong, and could and should be changed. I hope others can learn to question in the moment, and put aside their own personal wants as a photographer and prioritize the needs of the wildlife they photograph , as I failed to do in this instance.
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EE Legend
-Health injury/stress levels (scale 1-10-->☠️)
👣-Translocation
⏳-time in captivity
📷 - in situ - studio
🎨 - Use of cloning or extensive post processing
For those curious about the EE and scale you can refer to my earlier post tinyurl.com/y7vvoxv3
Leaf-mimicking katydid
A leaf-mimicking katydid from Jatun Sacha reserve, Ecuador.
Several factors conspired on my trip to this reserve which led to more capture-releases, stressed animals and ultimately deaths than average. None of the following excuses are acceptable, but they are common, speak to a mindset, and a normalization of casualties ie. habituation. This is especially true in that grey area where research and photography overlap.
First was an abundance of arthropod life, much more than I had seen elsewhere, 2) the availability of research facilities and equipment like light traps which increased yields 1000 fold, 3) Wildlife found especially close to the cabins, allowing for assembly-lining of white background shots, therefore holding species for overly long as the queues began to back up, 4) The presence of other biologists which shared their subjects and thus increased the number of subjects (especially rare and interesting ones) still further. Essentially it was an oversupply, and I was too gluttonous too stop and consider. Rather than limiting the number and trying to photograph fewer and with better standards and care, I tried to do too much. This is a common theme, especially in insect, and reptile and amphibian photography, where both huge numbers and casualties (to a certain extent) are normal and treated cavalierly. When operating within this closed system, especially with others that bear the same mindset, it can become a negative cycle of reinforcement. Obviously I'm not proud of this behaviour, but it took retrospect to even see that what I was doing was wrong, and could and should be changed. I hope others can learn to question in the moment, and put aside their own personal wants as a photographer and prioritize the needs of the wildlife they photograph , as I failed to do in this instance.
-----------------
EE Legend
-Health injury/stress levels (scale 1-10-->☠️)
👣-Translocation
⏳-time in captivity
📷 - in situ - studio
🎨 - Use of cloning or extensive post processing
For those curious about the EE and scale you can refer to my earlier post tinyurl.com/y7vvoxv3