Sandford Photography

Photo: Dave Sandford Another image captured here in my local woods. Great Horned Owl encounters have treated me very well this fall. When I was a teenager I used to go to this forest to shoot in the mornings before my ‘real job’ I always remember on my walks home wishing how I could just stay, wishing I didn’t have to leave to go work, wishing that I could just take photos of animals and nature for the rest of my life.. and make it my career. All these years later it’s nice... to think how dreams can come true if you set your mind on your goals. Little did I know back then, all these years later I would find myself back in this forest, spending all the time i care to in the woods, without anywhere else I have to be. In a year has been difficult for so many, including myself, it’s been so nice knowing I have this area to allow me to connect and interact with nature. It’s been awesome to have a project that keeps me shooting, doing something I love and learning so much about the animals I’ve been fortunate to spend a considerable amount of time with. I’m excited to keep rolling out this new material with you all on my social pages and will have a fresh new looking site re-launch soon. It’s exciting for me to share this content knowing it’s wildlife that literally lives mere steps from the home I grew up in. I hope you’ve been enjoying it as much as I’ve enjoyed being out there, capturing these moments to share with you. See more

Photo: Dave Sandford After the last week of beyond unseasonably warm weather here in Southern Ontario (daily highs of 20C) it’s hard to think that I captured this image just a week ago today. The temperature was a crisp -5 & we had about 5cm of fresh snow blanketing everything in the morning. Knowing this I set out early in hopes of an encounter just like you see here. A big beautiful 10pt buck amidst our short lived winter wonderland. Our meeting came very early & was brie...f but magical. It would be my only encounter on this morning. I clocked over 10km in search of more forest friends on this day, what sticks with me the most is watching the forest transform before my very eyes. In the 7 hours spent in the bush it went from a pristine winter wonderland to absolutely zero evidence it ever snowed that much. Had anyone slept in past lunch hour, you’d have never known a flake of snow was on the ground. I look forward to more snow days this winter (yes you heard correct, I love winter & snow) and since I can’t travel for my career the way I’m used to I will continue on with my friends of the (local) forest project. It’s been an absolute pleasure rediscovering my own backyard all these years later. It’s truly amazing how much wildlife literally lives right under our noses. . You just have to put in a little time & have a little patience.. and the secrets of the forest will slowly reveal themselves to you. See more

Photo: Dave Sandford The playful fox. This was one of 4 foxes on the scene on this day. I’ve been asked a lot of questions lately about my local wildlife posts & how I see so much. To be honest,i don’t. Remember, social media is basically our highlight reel. Wouldn’t be as interesting if I was posted scenes without my main subject in it, would it now? The truth is, these moments seen on here & other similar feeds are often fleeting. If I look back to April when I started this... project, I’ve sunk in an average of 6 hours a day in the forest. There are days I see nothing, there are days like yesterday it feels like the whole forest came out to play. I thought I’d pass along a few tips for those who want to potentially see more. 1 know your subject, even a quick google search helps, know what’s in your area & where to look, Meadow, water, high in a tree, low in a tree? Time of day that’s best. 2 Time & patience are key, the more you have the better your odds. 3 How do you conduct yourself? What type of energy are you projecting? Don’t expect to see much if you are walking & gabbing with a friend. Being quiet, moving slowly but with intent & purpose. Your body language tells animals a lot. Should you cross paths, don’t use fast movements, don’t be in a rush. I often freeze, even take a slow step back, kneel down, yawn, bow my head or look off as I’m not too interested. Make yourself as inviting as possible. Animals are curious & if you come off as non threatening they often will relax their guard. In this case with the foxes, late day.. & foxes are super curious, playful (they’re k-9’s after all) I got on my hands & knees & even my stomach. Being at their level & even below they feel less threatened & it increases their comfort/curiosity level & like this family they became very playful, coming right up to me & my camera for a closer look & sniff. Lastly, if you do find animals, respect their boundaries. Allow them to come to you, if an animal is caught off guard or takes off don’t force the encounter. Let it be. Aim for another day or move on & come back later. Just like us, animals have different personalities, good days & bad days. Put yourself in their shoes for a moment. See more

Photo: Dave Sandford Right about this time I should have been coming off the tundra after day one of photographing polar bears.. and getting settled in for what would have been the first of 16 days in Churchill, Manitoba. I say should have been because like every single other nature related assignment/expedition in 2020 it was cancelled due to Covid. Unfortunately for myself, the province of Manitoba closed its borders to those of us living in the eastern provinces. I was re...ally holding out hope that this last opportunity in 2020 was going to come to be, something I needed so badly to help fuel my soul & get me through till next year. However, it was beyond my control & in times like these other things take priority, health & safety come first. Not only was I looking forward to what would have been my longest stint in Churchill to date. . I was looking forward to spending some quality time with some quality people. Under the guidance of my friends Discover Churchill & Nanuk Operations & in the company of the fine folks at Polar Bears International I will miss the bears, the town, the tundra & the people. I wish you all great success & the bears happy hunting once the ice forms. For the time being I will be uploading some new images from past assignments, such as this mother & her cubs on the sea ice in the high Arctic. Polar Bear week is coming up starting Nov 1.. expect to see polar bear content through my feed & in my stories. For even more bear content check out the accounts of the above mentioned folks. See more

Photo: Dave Sandford Following in mom’s footsteps. With all the time in my life I’ve spent in the field, this was actually the very first time I had ever laid eyes on a fawn. One summer morning this year while under the cover of my photo hide, out from the edge of the creek a doe appeared. Seconds later, emerging from behind her was this little fawn. They moved up & down the creek feeding on the leaves along the shoreline all the while completely unaware of my presence. This particular moment was the end of about 30 min of observing them as mom crossed back in the direction they originally came from. The little fawn was distracted as mom crossed the creek and when it turned it noticed mom had a good head start.. so it took one big bounding leap to catch up and they disappeared into the bush.

Photo: Dave Sandford How cute is this little baby raccoon..!? One morning on my pre dawn walk down to the ravine I came across two little raccoons. I didn’t see mom anywhere in sight, although I’m sure she had an eye on me. These two were frolicking about under a tree at the edge of the ravine. It didn’t take them long to scramble up the trunk & into the safety of the trees branches. This particular image was captured with a 400mm telephoto lens from a decent distance back.... . I literally grabbed 1 sequence of images of each face, a burst of 14 frames per second, one burst of each & I let them be. Although these little fellas are somewhat used to people living on the edge of an urban environment it is never good to put unnecessary pressure on them or any animals. It was obvious that without mom around & this strange dude holding a giant eye staring back at them they were doing what their instincts have taught them to do. . Run away from danger. So, should you find yourself in a similar situation, put yourself in their shoes for a moment. It’s nice to have a photo but if it comes at the cost of putting unnecessary pressure on the animal it’s best to step away & let them be. Every animal, just like you & I are different. They all have different personalities, good days, bad days & each has different survival instincts. So always best to read the room so to speak. Let me know if you enjoyed seeing this little fella in my feed. See more

Photo: Dave Sandford One of the things I love so much about heading out into the field each day is the element of the unknown. In the morning I leave the house with nothing other than visions, hopes & dreams.. I leave home with a blank canvas, & there is no way of telling what I will return home with at days end. That in itself makes every single day with a camera in my hand an exciting adventure of the unknown. An opportunity to create something brand new that no other perso...n can or will ever replicate. No two single frames are ever the same. Working in nature, you have no control over what you might see or not see. Some days are a let down, other days are full of surprises & amazing moments. No matter what, every day has the potential for a special, rare or amazing moments. Sometimes it’s something simple, other days it’s the light, perhaps it’s a rarely seen moment or species. The more time you spend in the wild the great your chances are of seeing rare & wonderful moments. All of these things are elements of why I love what I do. The element of the unknown & the potential to witness & create something special. Other days you head out with the hope & anticipation of seeing & capturing a specific species. . Such as I did last last week when I set out to hopefully capture beautiful fall imagery of a buck in rutting season. However, what I came home with instead were images of owls (see previous post) & this great blue heron pictured here. A moment in time that had I not been there no human being would have ever seen. But through the magic of photography here I am, able to share the special moments I get to witness with all of you. Hidden away in my blind, I watched this heron land, wade around, catch some lunch & as seen here, take off to its next location. . All the while, hidden away, allowing it to peacefully go about its business none the wiser to my presence. Special memories for myself & a new ‘canvas’ which at the start of my day didn’t exist. . And all just steps away from home. There is so much to explore and experience if you just put yourself out there.. Get out & create, you never know what you might see! See more