Pinery Provincial Park

If your pictures aren’t good enough,
you aren’t close enough.

~ Robert Capa
American – Photographer October 22, 1913 – May 25, 1954

Porte Ponderings:

I don’t think Robert Capa meant to take the picture closer and do only close-ups. I think you have to start by understanding your subject matter and getting closer. If you’re photographing wildlife you need to learn about your subject and have a passion for the subject to have it show in your photos.

I’ve loved turtles every since I was very little. Back when you were allowed to keep pet turtles, I had two painted turtles in a little dish with a plastic palm tree on the TV. We would take them out of the dish and race the turtles on the kitchen floor in the sunshine. Then it became illegal, apparently turtle habitats in captivity are high in e-coli and other bacteria that might be harmful to humans. Now as a more mature person I understand that turtles need to be in their native habitat and permitted to live their lives as free creatures. But I still love to be close to them, so kayaking and photography is a much better way to be observing them. Pinery Provincial Park is the place to find them. My record number of sightings were 179 painted turtles and 2 snapping turtles.

Learning more about my native heritage, I can see why turtles are so important to me, as we all live on turtle island. My ancestors left their family and reservations in search of adventure and safety for their children. In recent years we’ve heard more about the children that were taken away to residential schools or taken away by child welfare agencies and the abuse they suffered often including death. Many of the women left the reservations to ensure they could keep their children. Indians gladly enfranchised, gave up their native status, to be able to vote and live a life of freedom. The ties to heritage, culture and family were severed as intergenerational damage cut the final connections to language and religion. It was shameful to say you were part Indian, so families hid their heritage. It’s surprising to discover how many people in my subdivision growing up had Native heritage. I’m so glad to see that this is slowly changing as culture is being reclaimed and shown with pride again. My husband’s Muncee-Delaware flag hangs on the front our home. Yes, it includes a turtle on the flag.