Tree Scraper

This buck proved to be one of the most difficult to photograph of any buck I have ever chased.  It took me about 5 weeks of relentless pursuit to finally get a good photo.  It is not that I had not seen the buck or couldn’t close the distance, I have 350 bad pictures that would prove otherwise.  For some reason the elements were out to get me.  Lighting proved to be the biggest thorn in my side as several times i closed the gap just in time for storms to roll in blocking the sun and sending the light plummeting.  To say my frustration was mounting after 3 or 4 weeks is a serious understatement, I was almost ready to concede defeat but I just couldn’t, not on a buck of this caliber.  I don’t know how most big game photographing fanatics go about it but for me I find an animal I want to photograph and then don’t give up until I get the shot.  I have followed animals for up to 7 or 8 weeks before finally snapping the shot I am after, so you can imagine the feeling of ecstasy when I snap some fantastic photos after a particularly long and taxing hunt.  This was the case with Tree Scraper it was unimaginable relief and joy as I stood there in the cold winter air, feet cold and socks full of burrs and raised my hand to my brother signaling that we had done it, the chase was over.  You see only about 2 hours before all seemed lost when as I was closing in on the deer and a truck rounded a distant corner heading our way causing my brother to have to shoo the deer or risk having him found.  We watched, sick to our stomachs, as Tree Scraper disappeared over a hill into a small draw.  What we didn’t know was that 2 long hours later my brother would watch through the binoculars as I closed the gap to about 60 yards and snapped the photo above along with about 30 others.  It had taken some doing but as with so many of the big buck photos on this site it was another experience with my brother that I will never forget.  Thanks must also go out to my dad who sped out after work on several occasions to help spot as I tried to close the distance.  Hunters know the thrill and relief of harvesting trophy animals.  For myself, my brother and my dad  the thrill of the kill is most often experienced through the lens of a camera but the ecstasy is just the same.

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