Presented to the UNIVERSITY OF TORONTO LIBRARY by the ONTARIO LEGISLATIVE LIBRARY 1980 We 1 hh. Chants i { ‘ i et i é ai : A rave Ag RA AN te ( i ’ » : bei A ‘ bine) Yl i i | \ a ‘ We nie % a im Day / ayy vay i AY : ee f Mie ai ‘ Ny ott \ Te * . a a A / ihe f : v. Nt A Mey Wa ; os oN i hiv hi! fut i i Aut IKI “Pot aie Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2010 with funding from University of Toronto htto://www.archive.org/details/naturephotographOObedf iia p ' é iy ear tay NEAT f } A at Ve ' i Wey ‘i ; : ¥ i f ihe ! ‘ i A ( eis 0 ye A ie i er ‘ , j , i p Wo } i ; f ied ) \ ; ’ ur ‘ “y a“ ‘ i Ty ' f } Nh Y Mg At ty Vy} j he i i \ NATURE PHOTOGRAPHY “We see distinctly only what we know thoroughly.” JosepH WoLrF. NATURE PHOTOGRAPHY FOR BEGINNERS BY bt, BEDFORD’ WITH COLOURED FRONTISPIECE AND NEARLY ONE HUNDRED STEREOSCOPIC ILLUSTRATIONS FROM PHOTOGRAPHS TAKEN DIRECT FROM NATURE BY THE AUTHOR Oe, ON DON J. M. DENT & SONS Ltp. 29 BEDFORD STREET, STRAND, W.C. nt i 2 in to. a rat A TO MY FATHER AND MOTHER WHO HAVE ALWAYS TAKEN THE GREATEST INTEREST IN MY WORK, I AFFECTIONATELY DEDICATE THIS BOOK PIE FACE So far as I can ascertain, this is the first book treating of Nature Photography which is illustrated almost entirely by means of reproductions of stereoscopic photographs. I hope, therefore—notwithstanding the numerous existing volumes dealing in some form or other with the representa- tion of Nature by means of the camera—that room will be found for this volume. If it should also be the means of reviving stereoscopic work in the direction of Nature Photography I shall be highly gratified. The illustrations have been selected from a very large number in my collection, and every one has been photographed direct from Nature by myself. The stereoscopic ones should, of course, be seen through a stereoscope. I desire to express my heartiest thanks to all those friends who have assisted me by finding subjects, acquainted me with the whereabouts of curious nests, or helped in other ways. My thanks are specially due to Mr. J. Ade, Mr. W. Wratten, Mr. W. A. Alderton, Mr. J. S. Forbes, Mr. J. E. A. Gwynne, J.P., Major H. P. Molineux, J.P., and Colonel H. Finn for permission to take photographs on their respective estates; vil viii NATURE PHOTOGRAPHY also to my friend Mr. E. J. Bunnett, M.A., for kindly reading through the proof sheets. If the perusal of the following pages should be the means of inducing some persons to use the camera instead of the gun, and should also cause them to take a greater interest in our Wild Life, the purpose I had in view will have been accom- plished. E. yf: EASTBOURNE, ]une 1909. CON TEN T.5 CHAP. I. INTRODUCTION A 5 : : 5 II. APPARATUS: THE CAMERA AND PLATE-HOLDERS III. APPARATUS—continued : THE LENS IV. AppaRATUS—continued: SHUTTER, TRIPOD, AND OTHER ETCETERAS : V. THe Dark Room, DEVELOPING AND PRINTING VI. ON THE CHOICE OF SUBJECTS § VII. A Few Hints ON STEREOSCOPIC NATURE PHOTOGRAPHY . VIII. How To OBSERVE AND PHOTOGRAPH SOME OF OUR COMMONER Brrps AND THEIR NESTS AND EccGs IX. How To OBSERVE AND PHOTOGRAPH SOME OF OUR COMMONER BrrRDS AND THEIR NESTS AND Eccs—Continued . X. How To OBSERVE AND PHOTOGRAPH SOME OF OUR COMMONER BIRDS AND THEIR NESTS AND Eccs—Continued . XI. How To OBSERVE AND PHOTOGRAPH SOME OF OUR COMMONER BIRDS AND THEIR NESTS AND Eccs—Continued . XII. Some Curious NESTING-PLACES XIII. THe First THREE WEEKS IN THE Lire oF A Cuckoo XIV. NIGHTINGALE LANE XV. Tue PHoToGRAPHY OF ANIMALS, INSECTS, AND FLOWERS . XVI. PROTECTIVE COLOURATION INDEX ix PAGE 100 pier, 128 135 143 147 155 164 Ne “ah \s ’ i oh A: i “iy i LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS BLuE TiT GoInc To NEst . - : : 4 : Frontispiece FIG. I THE AuTHOR’S CAMERAS AND TILTING-BOARD . To face page 3 2 Sone TuHRUSH’S NEST ae 5 3 YounG Sonc THRUSHES f 5 4 BLACKBIRD’s NEST . 12 5 LoNG-TAILED Tit’s NEsT . e. 12 6 WiLtp Duck on NEST * 14 7 Witp Ducx’s NEstT. ps 14 8 PHEasAntT’s NEstT (18 eggs, 5 were e laid ‘6 a bond bird, their different colour showing this) ‘ - ns 19 g LITTLE GREBE’S NEstT (site), (photograph taken before disturbing the reeds in front of nest) F 3 . A 19 10 LitTLE GREBE’s Nest (showing covering placed over eggs by the bird on leaving the nest) . : . nb 21 I1 LitTLE GREBE’s NEsT (covering over eggs removed for the purpose of photographing them. It was after- wards replaced) . 5 - 3 < 2 : % 21 12 SOUTHDOWNS . : é i 4 y A i se 28 13 A TEAM OF SUSSEX OXEN 2 ; F : é Ae 28 14 COMMON WHITETHROAT’S NEST é 4, 30 15 SAND Martins’ Nests (Some of these naa to be re- moved on account of working the sand-pit and were laid bare specially for the purpose of obtaining a photograph. The channel from face of cliff to the f nest containing 5 eggs measured 27 inches in length) c * 30 16 Lapwine’s NEstT : f : : E : : a3 35 17 YOUNG LAPWING CROUCHING . ‘ : ‘ 3 > 35 18 MoorHEN’s NEstT i 37 19 NIGHTJAR’s Ecos 5 3 : , é : Fi 37 20 YounG Nicutyars (egg-shells still i in nest) . : : nf 44 xl xii NATURE PHOTOGRAPHY FIG. 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 Sh) 34 35 36 37 38 39 Younc Nicutjars (photographed g days after Fig. 20) . ’ CHIFFCHAFF’S NEST . WiLtow WARBLER’S NEST A SuMMER’s Day SussEX OxEN AT PLOUGH ‘ Rosin’s Nest (built in some ivy on the wat * the Author’s garden) . ; ‘ . RoBIN GOING TO NEST WITH FooD FoR YOUNG Younc Rosrns (from nest shown in Fig. 26) MEADow Piprit’s NEST GOLDEN-CRESTED WREN’S NEST HEDGE SPARROW’S NEST CoMMON PARTRIDGE’S NEST Corn Buntinc’s NEST HAWTHORN IN BLOOM ‘ é HAWTHORN IN BLoom (nearer view of a belies of Fig. 34) - : - ‘ ; : : ComMMON PARTRIDGE’S NEST UNDER SEAT (22 eggs) DorRMOUSE’S NEST Daisies ASLEEP (taken in the evening when the UOTES had closed) Daisies AWAKE (the same group as Fig. 38 ites the following morning) WiLp Roses FOXGLOVES SPRING FLOWERS Woop ANEMONES PEAR TREE IN BLoom GOOSEBERRIES By THE WaysIDE (Wild Carrot) RHODODENDRON HoNESTY IN BLoom ¥ HONESTY IN SEED (same santa as Fig. 48) . Nest oF LArv#® oF LacKEY MoTH é LARGE MUSHROOM (greatest diameter 14} inches; 7 inches high) To face page LIST OF ILEUSTRATIONS FIG, 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 We 73 74 75 76 Thi 78 79 80 81 82 83 RED ADMIRAL BUTTERFLY (wings expanded) : To face page RED ADMIRAL BUTTERFLY (wings partly closed) . LarGEeE WHITE BUTTERFLY ; - : Cocoons oF SIx-SspoT BURNET MoTH RosBin’s NEST In OLD CUPBOARD (site) Ropin’s NEsT AND Eccs In OLD CupPpBOARD (shown ini Hip, 56) =. c - : : : Ropin’s NEST IN CURTAIN IN SCHOOLROOM (site) Ropin’s .NEST IN CURTAIN IN SCHOOLROOM (photo- graph taken from the platform shown in Fig. 58) Ropin’s NEsT IN BOOKCASE IN SCHOOLROOM BLACKBIRD’s NEST WiTH 8 EGcGs Sonc THRUSH FEEDING YOUNG IN CAGE Great Tit’s NEstT In Por (site) GREAT Tit’s NEstT IN Pot (lid removed) Ropin’s Nest IN Hat : 5 PLAYMATES 3 : C 0 : : 3 4 SWALLOW’s NEST BUILT ON TENDRIL OF Ivy . WREN’S NEstT IN WAGGON ROPE ‘ : SEDGE WARBLER’s NEST CONTAINING Cuckoo’s Eae . YounG Cuckoo 6 Days OLD IN SEDGE WARBLER’S Nest (one of the Sedge Warbler’s eggs thrown out by the young Cuckoo is resting on edge of nest) Younc Cuckoo 6 Days OLD YounG Cuckoo 14 Days OLD . 5 Empty Nerst OF SEDGE WARBLER AFTER YOUNG Cuckoo HAD FLOWN HEDGE SPARROW’S NEST BUILT BEHIND WIRE NETTING SITE OF NIGHTINGALE’S NEST . . . . ° NIGHTINGALE ON NEsT . : 5 A 4 NIGHTINGALE’S NEST + > 5 : BUTTERFLY ORCHIS . : - DANDELIONS . : : - 2 5 4 . LARV2 AND Cocoon oF Puss MoTH , xiil 92 92 94 94 99 99 IOI 108 108 IIO I1IO II5 II5 117 07 I1g 11g 122 122 124 124 126 126 131 131 133 133 135 135 138 138 140 xiv NATURE PHOTOGRAPHY FIG. 84 Emprror Morn (female) . 4 j P To face page 140 85 Burnet Motus AND Cocoons . ‘ . ° . Be 142 86a BROoWN-TAIL MOTH r . > 2 ° . Fe 142 86b Rep ADMIRAL BUTTERFLY ~ 4 F F a 142 86c MAGPIE Motu ; . - ‘ : a be 142 87 Hark! THE LaRK . ' ‘ . . 7 ; a 147 88 Common ToapD . ‘ 5 . F ” ‘ - 147 89 YouNG COMMON SANDPIPERS CROUCHING . . : eo ISI g0 KENTISH PLOVER’s EGGs in situ ‘ : ‘ ; ~ ISI g1 STONE CURLEW’s EcGs in situ ; ; ; r i 158 92 PHEASANT ON NEST. . = ; ; , - 158 93 COMMON WREN’sS NEST IN BRACKEN . ; : Pa 162 94 ComMON TERN’S EGGs in situ . 4 : é . - 162 NATURE PHOTOGRAPHY CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION THE number of persons who are devoting some attention to the fascinating subject of Nature Photography appears to be on the increase, judging from the many books dealing with it, in some form or other, which have been published during the past few years. Certainly, it might be said at the present day, “Of making many Nature books there is no end; ’”’ but it would hardly be equally true to say, ‘‘ Much Nature study is a weariness of the flesh.” On the contrary, the study of Nature is one of the best recreations for both body and mind, and should, therefore, be encouraged in all young people as well as in those of more mature years. One likes to think it is owing to an increased appreciation of Nature’s ever-varying delights which has brought about the demand for additional literature devoted to the subject—a demand which is so well provided for at the present day. Nature study, as a subject of instruction, has been introduced into many schools with very satisfactory results. It has proved of far greater interest to the scholars than some of the other subjects taught. The Nature lover will surely be gratified to find that many, who at one time took pleasure in killing our wild life, now take much greater pleasure in photographing it, and, at the same A 2 NATURE PHOTOGRAPHY time—what is more satisfactory still—leave it unharmed for others to observe and enjoy. Some of the books already published show what remark- able results may be achieved, provided the photographer has the necessary time and means at his disposal; coupled with the all-important exercise of plenty of patience. The names of such successful exponents of the art as Messrs. R. and C. Kearton, R. B. Lodge, Oliver Pike, and Douglas English occur to one’s mind as some of the more prominent workers. But it is not every one, however enthusiastic he may be, who has the necessary time and means at his disposal to produce similar results, even if he were willing to dangle over dangerous cliffs at the end of a rope, climb high trees, or stand in water for hours, not to mention other exciting adventures. Only being able to devote a limited amount of time to Natural History Photography myself, I have had to rely for the majority of my subjects on such as are of common occurrence. This manual has been written specially for those commencing the study of Nature Photography, or those desirous of taking it up, the majority of whom will probably find themselves in similar circumstances to myself, as regards the time they are able to devote to the practice of their hobby. An endeavour will be made to describe how to obtain many interesting results with an expenditure of only the limited time which the majority have at their disposal, and I hope, therefore, the suggestions offered may be found both useful and practical. When we consider it is only about forty years ago that the dry plate was introduced which made photography possible as a hobby for the average individual, we can hardly refrain from marvelling at the wonderful results which have since Fig. 1. The Author's Cameras and the Tilting-Board. INTRODUCTION 3 been obtained. The illustration of our books and magazines at the present day is only one phase of the way photography has been able to minister to our profit and enjoyment, and to mention two others: astronomy owes many important discoveries to the sensitive photographic plate, which will » reveal the existence of bodies quite impossible to be perceived by the aid of the most powerful telescope that has been constructed hitherto. The Réntgen Rays, too, by the aid of the sensitive photographic plate, have also administered to our infirmities, and permit a diagnosis of broken bones and many other uses in surgery which would have been quite impossible without their assistance. But as we are here dealing more especially with Nature Photography, let us consider a few useful results now made possible in that section of work. Many of the children who are brought up in our large cities and towns, and who attend the elementary schools therein, are unable, for various reasons, to see the wonders of Nature for themselves. Photography has made it possible to bring wild Nature to such as these, and by so doing, give them an interest in living things which they could not otherwise have. Some of us may have heard the story of the boy who was going mushrooming, and on asking a pal to accompany him received the following reply, “‘ Oh, yes, I will come as I ama good’untoclimb/” It is no doubt due to conditions such as the above which has led to the introduc- tion of Nature study into our schools. Another valuable feature of photographic work is the facility with which records can be made by its aid. Many counties have now, in full working order, what is known as a ‘““Photographic Survey.”’ The object of this is to obtain records of any building, object, or custom of interest—especi- 4 NATURE PHOTOGRAPHY ally such as are passing away—for the use of future genera- tions. Should we not value such records of bygone ages now, had it been possible to have obtained them? What an interest, for instance, a photograph of the egg of the Great Auk in situ would have, or of the bird itself, which has only become extinct during comparatively recent years, and which was at one time quite common. Very few specimens of the egg exist at the present day, and one sold by auction in the year 1894 realised the huge sum of three hundred guineas. One cannot but fancy how Gilbert White would have welcomed the use of photography to aid him in his studies, had it been available in his day. His charming book, The Natural History of Selborne—which has passed through about a hundred editions, and has become quite a classic—would, I think, have been even more interesting still had it been illustrated by a series of photographs taken by the author. The admiration he has expressed for some water-colour draw- ings done for him by an artist named Grimm leads one to think he would have been delighted with the help of the camera also. The point that more directly concerns us in connection with these surveys is that photographs of the fauna and flora of the district, and also of other natural objects, are wanted to add to the collections of records; and here, surely, we have a vast field of interesting and valuable work in which we may all lend a hand. But whatever may be the class of work we are engaged in, let us above all things be sincere, and never represent a thing or palm off anything as representing what it is not. There are times when it is comparatively easy to make up or manu- facture subjects; let us from the very commencement stead- fastly set our faces against any “ faking ’”’ of this kind, and Fig. 2. Song Thrush’s Nest Fig. 3. Young Song Thrushes INTRODUCTION 5 although we ought to do so because we value the truth above everything, it is as well to remember that those who are once found out in an attempt to palm off a “ fake ”’ will be sure to find, henceforth, their work will always be doubted. In our attempts at honest work disappointments are sure to occur. Plates exposed with every prospect of success will be found, sometimes, on development, to turn out failures; but we must be prepared for this and accept the failures as the neces- sary road to successes which are bound to come if we persevere. Remember the story of Bruce and the spider, which is an excellent one for any Nature photographer. Another Natural History story with a moral is one which may interest the reader, and is as follows: Two frogs acci- dentally fell into a pan of milk, and after swimming round for a long time, unable to get out, one gave up, sank to the bottom and was drowned. The other would not give up, and after a time, by continued efforts, he had the satisfaction of sitting on a pat of butter and was able from thence to jump out! The moral is obvious. The field of work in Nature Photography is endless, and no one individual during his life would have sufficient time to enable him to arrive at the end of its possibilities. Therefore, although so much work has already been done, a great deal more remains, in whatever branch the worker is particularly interested in, and no one need feel that any section has been exhausted by the results already obtained. The great advances made in the construction of lenses and other appliances, and the improvements in the quality and speed of plates, etc., have made results possible to-day which could not have been obtained a few years ago; and these improvements are still in progress. One of the latest develop- 6 NATURE PHOTOGRAPHY ments is a simple means of obtaining glass positives in colour by the ‘‘ Autochrome ”’ process, invented and placed upon the market by the well-known firm of Messrs. Lumiére Bros., of Lyons, France; and there is no doubt this process will be still further simplified and improved before very long. Another development, more recent still, is a method by which the ordinary cinematograph film can be thrown upon the screen in the colours of Nature. This is the invention of Messrs. G. A. Smith and Charles Urban of London. I do not intend to discuss the practice of photography at any great length, owing to the fact that many excellent and cheap handbooks already exist, dealing much more exhaus- tively with the subject than could be done here. To one of these, therefore, I would direct the beginner who has no practical knowledge, at the same time advising him to become as proficient as possible in producing a good average negative of the ordinary landscape type before specialising in Nature Photography. In this branch of work one’s apparatus has to be used at high pressure, as it were, and it is therefore advis- able to know by means of a little previous experience what the limitations are, beyond which it is either impossible or inadvisable to go. Some of my readers may already have certain apparatus which they wish to make use of; while others desire advice to enable them to purchase the kind likely to be of the greatest service. To the former I would say, almost any camera that can be used on a stand, and which is provided with a focus- sing adjustment, may be used; to the latter, any camera specially chosen for the purpose should be well constructed, of a substantial pattern, with double extension, and a rigid front, as the class of work for which it is to be used will entail INTRODUCTION 7 a certain unavoidable amount of rough usage. The saving of a few ounces of weight, although desirable, is not advisable in this class of work, if at the expense of rigidity. But those who desire to purchase suitable apparatus will do well to read carefully the following chapters, which deal more fully with the necessary points to be considered. In any case, the photographer will be almost certain to require little modifi- cations in his apparatus, after his first season’s work, and from his own practical experience will be in a better position to decide on those likely to suit his individual requirements. One cannot refrain from expressing the hope that the in- creased knowledge gained by a closer study of Nature may, amongst other things, prevent any wilful destruction of wild life through ignorance. For instance, the Owl is a bird most useful to the farmer, and yet it is often shot in the mistaken idea that it does more harm than good, and that it is best to get rid of it. The same remarks apply to the Kestrel, which feeds principally upon insects, while the food of the Owl con- sists of mice and field voles. Several instances are on record of plagues of the latter rodents on account of the needless and wilful slaughter of all the Owls in the district. The Englishman has a character which I am afraid is not altogether undeserved. It has been expressed in the follow- ing words: “ It is a fine day, let us go out and fz// something.” To this class of individual I would fain reply, by all means. If you find time hang heavily on your hands, kill tame by taking up the study of Nature Photography. CHAPTER II APPARATUS THE CAMERA AND PLATE-HOLDERS TueE choice of apparatus will to some extent be governed by the amount of money the photographer desires to invest, but let me at once say there are plenty of comparatively cheap cameras and lenses, etc., on the market, which are also very good value for the prices asked. The photographer, there- fore, who does not possess a deep pocket, may be sure of being able to obtain—with due care, of course—a set of apparatus which, while not costing an excessive amount, will yet be capable, if intelligently used, of turning out very good work. Remember, it is not so much the camera or lens as the man behind it, and act accordingly. If it be desired to purchase the apparatus for the least possible cost, then a visit to one or other of the second-hand photographic dealers, or an eye kept on the advertisement columns of the weekly photographic papers, will probably result in picking up a kit at about half its original cost. One word of caution, however; never buy any apparatus unless it can be had on approval, and do not send money to strangers, but use the deposit system adopted by practically all the papers, and so prevent the chance of “ being had.’ There are bad lenses and other goods on the market ready to be palmed off on unwary people. Lenses, for instance, may be fraudulently engraved with well-known makers’ names, and 8 * THE CAMERA AND PLATE-HOLDERS 9. great care in selection is necessary, or it may be that, instead of saving money, it is thrown away on worthless articles. The question of size naturally comes first, and perhaps in dealing with it my own experience will be useful. When I started—now a good many years ago—I did so with a }-plate camera which could be used either in the hand or on a stand. The size known as }-plate measures 44 ~ 3} inches. It is an ideal size for those who wish to use apparatus of the least weight and bulk, and if the ultimate aim is to make lantern slides or enlargements from the negatives obtained, it will answer very well. After using this for several seasons, I wished to be able to obtain stereoscopic photographs, and I therefore invested in a 3-plate stand-camera of the square bellows form with double extension. With this I could either take a single }-plate picture, size 64 x 43 inches, or two stereo- scopic ones side by side, on the same sized plate, and many of the illustrations in this book were obtained by means of this camera. It should be borne in mind that there is a con- siderable difference in the price of 4-plates and }-plates, and as it will be often necessary to expose several plates on the same subject, to prevent the possibility of losing a chance which, perhaps, may not occur again, the difference of cost, one way or the other, will be considerable during one season’s work. With the 4-plate camera, however, we have the means of using }-plates by having movable carriers in the dark slides to take them, and as many of the subjects in Nature Photography are small, even if taken their full natural size, a }-plate will be ample for them. There is one disadvantage connected with the 4-plate size, and that is the weight of the camera and lens, and say a dozen 4-plates in double dark slides, with the shutter, stand, focussing 10 NATURE PHOTOGRAPHY cloth, tilting-board, and other small accessories, including the case or cases containing them. I have on several occasions found the apparent weight of my kit appreciably heavier on my return journey after a long tramp than it seemed to be at the start, although I knew full well the subjects which had been impressed on the sensitive plates had not added a frac- tion to their weight. I found also, with additional experience, one had occasionally to augment the already heavy weight by carrying extra lenses, and often an extra reserve of plates, and it became necessary to make some alteration unless one were to develop into a kind of pack-horse. An opportunity having occurred of obtaining a Shew’s 4- plate “‘ Xit’’’ camera, arranged for stereoscopic work, I took advantage of it and used this for some time; and, in fact, still use it when I want to do 4-plate work. It is an excellent pattern, very light and rigid, and if the size decided upon should be 4-plate, I can strongly recommend this make. Ifa“ Xit”’ camera is selected it should have double extension of bellows, if possible, because this will add considerably to its use- fulness. There is a size of camera which takes a plate 5 x4 inches. This is used more extensively in America than in this country, and, personally, I do not consider it possesses any advantages over the much more universally used }-plate. Several years ago, a new size of instrument was placed on the market, known as the post card, and which takes a plate 543% inches. After a trial, I decided—principally on account of generally doing stereoscopic work—to adopt this as my standard, and I now work with a camera of this size, which can be adapted for ordinary or stereoscopic work, and may be used either in the hand or on a stand. THE CAMERA AND PLATE-HOLDERS II The 4-plate size has one advantage over the post card. The larger plate allows more latitude for the arrangement of the subject and more licence in trimming the prints for stereo- scopic work, which may each be 4x 23 inches in size if desired. A post card size plate may be also carried and used in the 4- plate slide by means of carriers. For stereoscopic work the post card size does not allow much margin for trimming, although two prints can be obtained 3 ~ 24 inches in size. It has, however, several advantages over the larger }-plate. The whole kit weighs considerably less, the plates cost about one- third less than the }-plates, and for their area, weigh less in proportion, being usually coated on thinner glass. It is the smallest size which I should recommend for stereoscopic work, and this is the branch I strongly advise all who wish to make the most of their work to take up. After seeing the object itself in Nature, I cannot help thinking that a good stereo- scopic photograph of it is the next best thing. I therefore suggest, if stereoscopic work is likely to be taken up, that a camera of the post card size be chosen in preference to any other. Stereoscopic photography will be treated of in a separate chapter, and it is, therefore, unnecessary further to discuss it here. Supposing the size of camera has been definitely settled, let us now consider the points to be noted in selecting one. It should be strongly built and able to stand a certain amount of knocking about—which it is sure to receive sooner or later— and what is known as the square pattern for preference, as the front is more likely to be rigid. The bellows should be capable of extending to at least twice the focus of the lens to be used. This is necessary because, if an object is to be photographed full size, the lens must be double the distance from the plate it 12 NATURE PHOTOGRAPHY would be if a distant view were being taken. For example, if the focus of the lens used were six inches, a camera extension of twelve inches would be necessary in order to obtain a photo- graph of any object its true size. The camera should possess a rising and falling front; also a swing-back, which will be found exceedingly useful at times. If it will permit of focus- sing being done either from the front or the back, this will be found a great convenience, although not absolutely necessary. Most of the usual patterns of }-plate or 4-plate cameras on the market are provided with a reversing back, an arrangement enabling a vertical or horizontal picture to be taken without shifting the camera on the tripod. This, while convenient, adds to the bulk of the camera, and in the case of the post card size is usually omitted on that account. It is really just as easy to turn the camera on its side and screw to the tripod in this position, when a vertical picture is required, and this arrangement will save a good deal in size and weight. A level should be permanently fixed to the swing-back, and if objects likely to move are being photographed—for example, young birds on a branch—a finder of some sort will be neces- sary in order to be sure the subjects remain in the field of view. For a stand camera, one of the direct view patterns will be most suitable, as it can be fixed to the top and in a good posi- tion for looking through at the object when the camera is on its tripod and placed too high for the photographer to be able to use one of the reflecting type. If it has the movements mentioned above, the simpler it is, otherwise, the better, as it will be more likely to enable the user to make the necessary adjustments automatically while his eyes may be directed and his attention required elsewhere. Other little points, such as brass-binding, will depend upon Fig. 4. Blackbird’s Nest. Fig. 5. Long-tailed Tit’s Nest. THE CAMERA AND PLATE-HOLDERS 13 the price paid, and must be left to the individual judgment of the purchaser. If the would-be photographer has no knowledge of ap- paratus his best course will be to obtain the services of a friend who has, and act on his advice. There are so many forms of cameras on the market, all equally good of their kind, that it is almost impossible to mention one in preference to another; as a matter of fact, the outlay proposed would have to decide, to a great extent, the particular instrument chosen. Perhaps it will be as well again to remark that a camera must be selected which can be used on a stand, as in the majority of cases—with the beginner at least—time exposures will be required, and it is impossible to give these unless the camera is on a firm support.