This past spring, a young man named Jess Findlay beat out over 25,000 other entrants to win the Youth Award in a prestigious photography competition hosted by Nature’s Best Photography.
The talented 19 year old submitted a photo of a red fox sitting in the snow with a very sleepy expression on its face: the groggy canine could be any hominid, pre-morning coffee.
When asked how he got into nature photography, Jess replied, “The big thing that got me into it was my dad. He’s been taking nature photos for 20 years now, if not more.
We were birdwatchers and nature enthusiasts when I was little…. Where I live has gotten me really into nature and photography.”
Jess’s words got us thinking.
Where we live inspires us to photograph as well. But it’s not just the obvious things, like the rugged line of the Rockies that creep into view just west of Cochrane, that bring us joy.
Sometimes it can be as simple as a spring crocus pushing its soft but determined little lavender snout through the frosty spring soil all along Cochrane’s beautiful river paths. But back to Jess.
What struck us about Jess was not really his winning image (although it is good) but that he loved photographing the natural areas around his home and that his dad inspired him and taught him to love nature.
No doubt Jess will continue to develop and share his love of the natural world around him as he continues to develop as a photographer and a young man.
Meanwhile, right here in West Terrace, there’s a little tragedy going on.
Remember those crocuses we mentioned? In previous springs, we’ve photographed some of them in a little natural area just off Quigley Drive. The area is signed as an ecological reserve and pedestrians are asked to stay on the pathways.
Unfortunately though, this little natural area has become appealing for children to toboggan down with the result that the scrubby little hill-side is seeing some serious compaction and damage. Crocuses are tough. But not even a crocus can push through hardened, compacted soil.
I bet those parents who let their children sled there haven’t even walked along that pathway in spring time.
But there is something we photographers can do, and indeed anyone who values and respects nature — and that is to teach our children that even the smallest of lavender-coloured flowers deserve a chance to grow.
