Photographer chases owl around field and refuses to stop. This is why we need to talk more about wildlife photography ethics

A Reddit thread has turned up something that’s near and dear to my heart: wildlife photography ethics. The post by NeedlesslyMike features an image of a person standing very close to a short-eared owl in flight. The accompanying text explains that said person was following the owl around, “nonstop chasing the bird from one end of the field to the other (...) The bird eventually got tired and sat in a tree,” whereby the photographer got “super close” to capture more images.

They rightly point out that while a situation like this might not appear to be causing direct harm to the animal, it can indirectly cause harm and, in some cases, death. If a bird has been recovering from an injury, prey has been in short supply, or weather conditions have prevented the animal from flying, a failed hunt can have far-reaching consequences. The stakes are even higher if it has young beaks to feed.

And this doesn’t just apply to birds of prey. The moment you interfere with a wildlife subject, you’re potentially causing an imbalance that could lead to harm. This could be parents abandoning young, predators not being able to hunt effectively, animals blighted by undue stress, the list goes on. Ideally, a wildlife photographer or filmmaker should be an observer. Sure, there are times when animals approach humans, but even then, the role of the creator should be as passive as possible.

All that being said, wildlife ethics isn’t something we talk about nearly enough within the photo and video community, which is why NeedlesslyMike’s post is so important. However, I think an awful lot of wildlife photographers could look back at how they started their craft and would – truth be told – probably admit that they had a lot to learn (myself included).

As such, I think it’s important not to completely vilify photographers who are acting in a less-than-ideal manner, and instead seek to educate them. Unfortunately, it would seem that NeedlesslyMike did this, but the two photographers in question refused to listen. “I have a lot of grace for beginners, because they’re just figuring things out,” he says in the post, “but you could tell she does this often. She even had a buddy who was circling around to flush the owl towards her.”

This highlights the fact that it’s not always beginner photographers who make mistakes. Some seasoned wildlife photographers don’t practice good ethics, and worse still, they know it. Now, wildlife photography is always going to throw up controversies and discussions. But if you’re directly impacting the wildlife that you’re photographing, you’re doing something wrong.

NeedlesslyMike offers some advice as to how to approach wildlife correctly, but because this is such a huge subject, this is something I’ll cover in a future article. Just make sure that when you go on your next wildlife photoshoot, the well-being of the animal in question always comes before your photography.

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