Like many artists, Mark Price ’24 has gained a surreal insight into nature’s beauty in his conquest of birding photography. Birding, as the name suggests, is the observation of birds in their natural habitats. Through this hobby, Mark sparked a journey of capturing his experiences while in the environment. This interest started in his freshman year and quickly became a significant part of Mark’s life. Starting without a pair of high-quality binoculars, Mark resorted to using “my Dad’s old Nikon to take pictures of everything I saw with the hope of identifying each bird once I had uploaded the pictures.” Ever since these early experiences, Mark has continued to photograph wildlife. As he has progressed from the beginning stages of photography, he has learned to take into deep consideration what position and angle each of his photographs should be taken at and has gathered a library of a variety of photos ranging from birds to reptiles and amphibians. Bringing his camera with him, he is able to capture nature’s moments when he travels and looks to continue expanding his collage of works.
The main part of birding that captures Mark’s interest is that he finds photographing wildlife to be both engaging and “almost addicting.” For Mark, one of the most prominent pieces of motivation stems from the idea that once he has a snapshot of a bird, he can “relive the experience of seeing the bird in person by going through the photo.” In addition, these photos serve as a way for Mark to appreciate his past experiences. For him, the photos he takes are not so much a matter of showing off or for personal gain but, instead, a way to reflect the beauty in nature. Photography has brought him out into nature and made him realize that “I find being alone outside to be truly refreshing and a healthy place in which I can be unbothered and with my thoughts.”
Mark has not posted or uploaded any of his photos publicly besides in the Sextant and, therefore, has yet to be recognized for his artistic talent. Although the acknowledgment that comes with winning an award may be tantalizing, Mark prompts that his photos are solely for his own interests and joy. He hopes “that if people see any of my pictures, they can appreciate the beauty of nature and maybe even be inspired to make changes in their own life for the benefit of preserving our world.”
