The Popular Science Monthly, August, 1900: Vol. 57, May, 1900 to October, 1900Various
Science
The Popular Science Monthly, August, 1900: Vol. 57, May, 1900 to October, 1900
Various
Science -- Periodicals; Technology -- Periodicals
Mr. Chapman is equally at home with camera or pen. In ‘Bird Studies
with a Camera, with Introductory Chapters on the Outfit and Methods
of the Bird Photographer,’ he gives us some of his many experiences
from Central Park to the swamps of Florida and the bare rocks of the
Gulf of St. Lawrence. The first two chapters are devoted to a brief
discussion of the outfit and methods of the bird photographer, and
these any one thinking of taking up this branch of art will do well
to read carefully. Mr. Chapman considers that a 4×5 plate is the size
best adapted for general purposes, and notes that while a lens with
short focus may serve for photographing nests and eggs, for the birds
themselves a rapid lens with focus of fourteen to eighteen inches
should be used. The rest of the book is for the general reader, and
contains many facts of interest concerning the haunts, habits, and home
life of a number of birds from the well-known sparrow to the unfamiliar
pelican, the accounts of the Bird Rock and Pelican Island being the
most interesting. Some of the illustrations are a little disappointing,
and emphasize the difficulties of photographing wild birds, but
there is ample compensation for these in the excellence of others,
particularly those devoted to Percé, Bonaventure and Bird Rock. This is
equally true of birds and scenery, the views of Percé Rock being the
finest that have fallen under our notice. Mr. Chapman’s estimate of the
feathered population of Great Bird Rock, which he puts at 4,000, is by
far the smallest yet made, and probably has the soundest basis, and
shows a sad diminution from the hosts of fifty years ago.
* * * * *
‘Bird Homes,’ by A. Radclyffe Dugmore, seems well adapted for its
stated purpose of stimulating the love of birds, helping the ordinary
unscientific person to get some closer glimpses of them, and aiding
in the study of their wonderfully adapted nests and beautiful eggs.
Furthermore, it will probably create a strong desire in the reader to
become a photographer of birds and their nests. To further these aims
we have a first part containing half-a-dozen chapters devoted among
other things to birds’ nests and eggs, photographing nests and young
birds and the approximate dates when birds begin to nest, this being
adapted to the vicinity of New York.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account