Hunt Photography...

PixInTheSix

PixInTheSix

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I've been a full time pro freelance photographer for 30 years and have been into the outdoors for far longer than that.

I'm curious if there is any interest in the community to hiring and bringing a photographer out on hunts. At this point I'm primarily thinking about waterfowl hunts rather than moose or deer etc hunts, in no small part due my having no interest in being any kind of distraction to game or interfering with the hunt itself. I have full camo (including for my gear) and my cameras are virtually silent; in other words, you'd almost forget I was even there and the birds will never know.

I would cover the entire day, including decoy layout, incoming flights, images of guns up, retrieves, the full day. Edited images would be provided to the party within a few days of the hunt and I'd provide free reign for members of the hunt to share or print the images as they please. I'm still working up rates but it won't be outrageous for professional shot memories of your hunt.

I'd love to hear your thoughts...
 
You might want to contact some guides/outfitters in your area, might be an add on that they could sell to their clients and hire you for it.

It would be easier to let them do the upselling or have it included in their packages. I would also think that the type of person paying for a guided hunt would be more likely to pay for professional pictures of their hunt vs the regular joe local guy.

The other thought would be to target it to wedding/bachelor party hunting trips, again maybe team up with an outfitter to have someone who can do all the setup and location finding and bring the group out.
 
No interest in that at all... speaking as a hunter and outfitter/guide. IMO, you would be better off offering your service for free and freelancing your photos to hunting publications and/or stockpile sites.
 
I also wouldn't be interested ;-( In bringing your idea to this hunting community, I'm guessing you are trying to validate if there is a market for your idea. It's unfortunate that there isn't that much interest (so far anyways), but it's always better to find out about these things sooner than later.

After the initial moral low of reading the replies, there are a few good ideas that are coming up for someone that has your skillset though. Combining forces with an outfitter would be one of those ideas. They need nice, great quality pictures to promote their services (brochures, web site, etc). Offer them to go on a few hunts and take pics.

I agree with the stock image ideas. That would be a great way to make a few $ on the side, but I'm not sure how much they compensate for each image download.

I always thought there was a lack of calendars with nice pics for us hunting folks. Might be a great way to showcase your work, but I doubt it brings in that much money.

In my case...if I think at a few ideas I've had (and actively researched) in the last few years. I always wanted to get someone to map my hunting grounds with a drone (done OUTSIDE of hunting season, of course). Ideally, image and topographic data would be nice. I had a talk with an old-coworker that told me he had everything to do it, but I left that place and we didn't keep in contact that much. I later learned he had a heart attack and was taking it real easy now ;-(

Also, if you have the know-how, a little 2-3 hour seminar on how to use an action cam correctly and how to choose one could be good? I've researched them a few times since I wanted to film a few moments during the hunt, but I never pulled the trigger. I'd need some guidance on which (cheaper) model to get from Amazon without getting screwed.

Hope you find something that relates to your passion that you can market!
David
 
If it was a once in a lifetime African Safari type hunt then yes I think it would be a good idea, for the average North American hunter I don’t think there’d be much of a market for it.
 
I think there is a market for it but it’d be tough to figure out. Folks would want good photos but few would be willing to pay. Possibly partnering with a seasoned big game outfit could work out, even less a waterfowl outfit, even less DIY hunters.
 
I didn't like the way that killing shot scene went, let's redo it a couple of times and see if we can improve on it. :p

Grizz
 
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