A blind may be a complex structure or just a simple expanse of cloth draped between uprights. Even a tent can be converted for use as a blind by cutting out observation windows, or by creating a hole for your camera's lens in an existing mesh window. You can use an existing structure in a suitable location, build your own blind or buy one that is ready-made and just needs to be moved into a good spot for wildlife photography. In any scenario, there are important things you should be aware of beforehand in order to make your blind photography experience more pleasant and productive.
Prefabricated blinds used by hunters are also suited to wildlife photography. Pre-made blinds are available in a variety of sizes and different heights. You should purchase one in which you will be comfortable for long periods of time.
COMMERCIAL BLINDS
Duck hunting outfitters and outdoors suppliers sell various portable blinds that can be packed in to a location and quickly set up like a tent. Many are retailed from web sites. A search of the internet will also reveal the availability of construction plans and kits for building blinds. The variety is great, and most hunters’ blinds are also suitable for photography.
BUILD YOUR OWN BLIND
Duck hunters’ bulletin boards and website guest books often carry home-made recipes for blind construction. Here is one example we came across for a “quick and easy” blind: “Using six to eight 3-foot rubber bungee cords, attach two 16-foot strips of 54-inch wide camouflage netting to six 6-foot poles. Use quick-ties (plastic wire ties) to attach bundles of nearby grass and weeds to the poles and netting. Put down some woven wire fencing for traction on an icy floor.”
You can build your own blind with more or less construction sophistication, depending on its permanence, your skills, availability of suitable materials and your imagination.
THINGS TO CONSIDER
In selecting or building your blind, take into account: - the terrain (or tree) on which it will be located,
- the practicality of the weight and size of materials to be packed in,
- whether the location can be reached by vehicle transport or on foot,
- the size you require (will it be occupied by one or ten people?), and
- its features (height, openings size, comfort, weather resistance, total enclosure and so on.)
A BLIND IN A TREE
If you are building a blind in a tree, choose a large tree and make a platform over the juncture of several solid branches, as close to the trunk as possible. The higher up the tree you go, the more likely it is to sway in the wind, potentially resulting in camera blur when using slow shutter speeds.
An advantage of being in a tree is that many animals, especially large ones such as moose, elk and deer, don't look for danger above their own eye level. Another advantage is that the tree's own foliage and branch structure serve to conceal your presence, in effect contributing to your blind's effectiveness.
CAMOUFLAGE
Once the blind has been set up, you can use material from the nearby area (leaves, fallen branches, grass) to provide camouflage. Some photographers contend that it is not necessary to try to disguise a blind as a natural part of the surroundings because animals detect it by smell. Many animals and birds soon become used to any new object that, after time, does not appear threatening to them. However, it seems to make sense that anything you do to make it blend in with the surroundings will help it to become less noticeable by animals.
A large blind that accommodates a number of photographers must be well-ventilated, as is this national park blind.
COMFORT
A blind should be reasonably comfortable, since you will be in it for hours at a time. Ideally, it will be located in shade, but if that is not possible, consider suspending a second cloth covering a foot or so above the blind. There should be sufficient room for its occupants to move about without stepping on each other, for seating and for storage of your gear. A relatively dark interior and shading over the openings will aid in concealing the occupants. The openings must be sufficiently large and at the right height for photography, but not too large that the occupants can be noticed.
Make sure there is adequate ventilation, particularly if the blind is under bright sun, with openings to let in air at the bottom and out at the top. If you are in mosquito or black fly country, you will be glad you placed insect barrier netting over the openings. You can even use netting over the camera opening, with a hole cut in it for the lens to project through.
If there are obstructions within your range of vision, you can be sure that wildlife will keep behind them.
IMPORTANT PLACEMENT CONSIDERATIONS
Obstructions - If you are locating your blind close to bushes, trees, rocks or other natural features that can block your vision, be sure you have unrestricted visibility from the blind's camera openings. The last thing you want is a branch or other obstruction blocking a potentially good shot. Sometimes, it may be necessary with an otherwise ideal location to do a little "gardening," involving the removal of a dead twig or trimming a shrub that is in your line of sight. Don't remove any material that supports or conceals an animal's den, a nest or should otherwise be left as is for the welfare of an animal.
Background - You will want a natural-looking backdrop for your wildlife pictures. The scene in front of your blind will be captured again and again as you take numerous pictures. Be sure it is attractive, contains no distractive elements, and offers you variety when shooting close-ups. Fences, electrical wires, buildings and other man-made structures are best avoided.
Lighting direction - Keep in mind that the sun will not provide the same illumination of the area in front of your blind in all four seasons. If you plan to use it in winter as well as in summer, make sure the sun won't be hidden behind a hill or forest during any season at the times of day when you expect to be taking pictures.
Shadow - If your blind is located very close to your subjects - say, a bird's nesting area in a marsh, for example - don't locate it so that its shadow may fall across the nest at any time of day.
Distance - Your blind should not be located so far away from the area in which you expect to photograph wildlife that even your longest lens will not provide sharp pictures, especially close-ups. But, it should also not be so close that you can't include the animals' habitat or that it disrupts the wildlife. Locating a moveable blind at the outside distance, then moving it forward day-by-day until you get it into the optimum range, can help ease animals into its acceptance. The distance from the blind to the area where you expect to see animals is also dependent upon the size of the creatures. Moose are not generally photographed from the same distance used for squirrels, for example. Use binoculars to observe the reaction of animals. If they seem nervous and perhaps look as if they may abandon the area or parents may leave their young, your blind is too close. Move it back, at least until they become more accustomed to its presence.
The distance from your blind to your wildlife subjects is determined by many factors, important among which is the size of your subjects.
Visibility - Avoid setting up your blind where it is likely to attract the attention of other people, in spite of your best efforts to camouflage it. Curious folks may walk over to inspect it and to see what you are there to photograph, unwittingly interfering with not only your picture-taking, but possibly endangering the wildlife. If you are not in the blind when it attracts people to it, they may interfere with it, even accidentally or maliciously causing damage. Camouflaging your blind so that it blends in with the area may be its best defence.
Protection - If your blind must be located in the open, in a highly-visible area to give you the best opportunities for your wildlife photography, see if you can place it where it is visible from the residents of a nearby cottage or farm house who can be asked to keep a watchful eye on it. Notifying park rangers, property custodians, watchmen, game wardens, gillies or the local police that you have placed a blind in a specific location allows them the opportunity to check up on it as they pass by in their daily routine.
Access - A blind that can be reached using several different routes will prevent the unwanted creation of a path that results from tramping down the same vegetation from frequent visits by you. A well-marked route can attract unwanted interference by others.
Cattle are curious creatures, as most are, and will investigate any new structure within their range, including your blind.
Farm and domestic animals - Cattle, sheep and other farm animals may be drawn to your blind simply because it is a new addition to their normal grazing range. That can be disastrous, since they may venture near when they are least welcome, and can actually damage your blind by rubbing against it. A farmer's or hiker's inquisitive dog may come sniffing around, ruining your photo session. Its barking will alarm wildlife, and there is a risk of a dog chasing other animals that the blind brought to its attention.
Fabrication materials - Rubberized fabric may seem to be a good idea to keep the rain away, but it can make a heck of a drumming noise when the rain falls on it, scaring off your subjects. Translucent material will show you moving inside the blind, especially when the sun is behind you.
Ground surface - Just as in setting up a tent, a level surface is essential for a blind. You don't want to be constantly feeling as if you are standing on a hill, and there is a risk of slipping should the ground become wet. Tripod set-up, a writing bench and seating comfort are better on a level surface. Drainage will take place properly if the surface on which the blind sits is higher than the surrounding area. Be sure the location is not placed in a dry creekbed that will become a torrent in the rainy season.
A normally-dry creekbed, such as this one near Tucson in the Arizona desert, can become a very wet one after a rainfall. Be sure your blind is well away from any dry waterway.
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