Secrets of nature photography: Snap a photo, then snap a few dozen more
Submitted by East Haddam Land Trust
It’s all about capturing the magic of the moment.
That’s the way one East Haddam amateur photographer describes the appeal of taking pictures of nature. Tess Jette, 65, lives on Upper Moodus Reservoir and is co-owner of the business Netting Now, which makes custom nets for debris containment and safety purposes.
Jette is one of dozens of people who have emailed their photographs to East Haddam Land Trust to be considered for selection to its annual nature calendars. Each year, the calendar features new photos, all of which should be taken within the town of East Haddam. Picture submissions from people of all ages, whether they live in town or not, are encouraged, but photographers should be amateurs. Photos can be taken at any time of the year and should focus on nature — from birds, bugs, and bobcats to landscapes, lakes, and lilies.
Great shots, as Jette and others will attest, can happen at any time, anywhere — even in your own backyard.
A head-on photo of an American bullfrog that Jette snapped at ground level in her yard was featured in EHLT’s 2025 calendar.
“I saw (the frog) but didn’t have my camera,” she recently recalled.
Lucky for her — and after a dash into the house to grab her digital camera — the frog was unmoved. It stayed precisely where she first saw it, near the base of a tree, ready for its close-ups.
“This was the first time I submitted a photograph (to EHLT). It was the first time I let any of my photos out in the public,” she said, adding, “And I must have enough photos to make hundreds of calendars.”
Tom Fitzmaurice, another amateur photographer in town, appreciates the unexpected when it comes to nature photography. He bought a camera just before the COVID outbreak in 2020. His wife had urged him to pick up a hobby, anticipating that, by his retirement in 2025 as a PhD clinical scientist and researcher at Sanofi Pharmaceuticals, he would need an activity he cared about.
The purchase of a Fuji camera set a course, and he has had several photos featured in EHLT’s calendars over the last three years.
“During the pandemic,” he said, “I used to tell my wife that I was going to take my camera out for a drive.”
Now 65, Fitzmaurice is enthusiastic about all photos taken in nature. “(The beauty), it’s all there,” he said. “It’s right out in front of us. All you have to do is push the button.” He says he has learned a lot about birds since taking up photography. “And I have a new appreciation for squirrels,” he added.
While he favors shooting landscapes, most of his pictures displayed in various EHLT calendars have been of birds. In the 2026 year’s edition, his Great Blue Heron walks and stalks in icy waters not far from Goodspeed Opera House, and the setting sun casts a magical display of golds, blues and grays.
His photography has led to another pursuit of sorts: woodworking. He has been using the remains of a picket fence from Long Island to frame pictures he gives to brothers and sisters.
“Each photo captures a memory, and I’m trying to take that and share with family,” he said. They particularly like receiving copies of EHLT calendars in which his photos are featured.
From her home off Sanfords Bridge Road, Gillian Lazarus Harris and her husband, Bruce Harris, enjoy a friendly competition with their nature photography. Right now, a bobcat sometimes crosses their yard, and they each would like to see it through the camera’s eye. They have had bear and fox, too.
Harris likes to stand outside her house and soak in the night sky. With her camera, she has captured meteor showers and auroras.
“I love having moments in time frozen,” said the 37-year-old chemist who works with BYK Additives in Wallingford. “For wildlife, a bird’s feathers, it’s really cool to zoom in and see all the details you might miss” without a camera lens.
After about 25 years in East Haddam and the surrounding area, Jette, a native of Rhode Island who grew up in Massachusetts, has developed a profound affection for nature.
“We’re fortunate to have such a beautiful state,” she said. “It doesn’t take much time to be in a place that’s natural, with a lot of undeveloped land.”
For Jette, the secret to “successful” pictures of natural spaces and the critters living there, is a photograph that looks just like what she saw in person. It’s not easy, she says, but it is a compelling challenge.
“The human lens,” she said, referring to our eyes, “captures so much more than the camera’s. We see light a certain way...To get that magic moment, you first have to learn a little bit. It can be just a little. And then you have to practice. Take pictures, and then take more.
“It doesn’t matter what kind of camera you have,” Jette added. “You just have to take pictures. You might take 100 photographs and get one or two that you like…the one that looks like what you saw.
“So when someone asks, ‘What’s the best camera to have?’ The answer is: ‘The camera you have with you!’.”
For info on photo submissions for possible selection to EHLT’s 2027 calendar, see: ehlt.org/photo-calendar. Deadline for the 2027 publication is mid-August.
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