3 Tips to Better Photograph an Antelope Hunt

Another summer has flown by, hard to believe but sort of what you'd expect I guess. That said hunting season is essentially here in Montana. The archery antelope opener is this Thursday and it's an exciting thing! All I can think about is fresh antelope steaks on the grill haha.

For many of you this is something you've been waiting for. Camera gear is ready, shot lists created, inspiration at 110%, and the time to start building your skill set and building a killer portfolio is now. For those of you who are about to go photograph an antelope hunt here are a few tips I have:

If you own a long lens (200mm+) take it and USE IT. Antelope have exceptional eyesight and getting close can be tough. Using your long lens allows you to quickly snap a great shot of a speedgoat if you stumble into one or see one off the side of the road and it also allows you to compress space and give a unique perspective of a hunter stalking a goat. This allows you to stay back 40-50 yards where the noise of your shutter won't distract the animal or hunter. Often closing the last few yards on a stalk is much, much easier as a one person show than a two person show.
Plan out what photos you want to shoot once you get an antelope killed. August is a hot month and antelope are damn tasty if you take care of them right away. Having a shot list prepared for this situation means you'll spend less time wondering what shots will look good and more time getting great shots and then be able to quickly transition to skinning and quartering the antelope.
Try to really document all the other things that go into the hunt outside of just the stalk and the quarry. This might mean glassing from a tailgate, drinking cold beers under the only shade for miles, eating tacos at a taco bus, etc. This is the content we all can relate to despite our skillsets as hunters and relatable content is good content.