Photographers get ready to HOWL

Professional and hobbyist nature photographers will gather at the Howl Wildlife Photography Convention in October for its usual slate of world-class speakers, Algonquin Park field trips, live music and camaraderie.

BY PATTI VIPOND

After being cancelled in 2020 and 2021 courtesy of the pandemic, the second Howl Wildlife Photography Convention will happen on Oct. 21-23 in Whitney.

Howl Convention founders Steve Dunsford, a wildlife/nature photographer, and “Bongo,” a South Algonquin Township councillor and owner with wife Andrea of Camp Bongopix, will ensure the convention is safe for nature photographers and featured speakers coming to Whitney, a scenic town nestled beside Algonquin Park’s Eastern Gate. Howl’s itinerary includes wildlife photo forays into the Park, fabulous meals, musical evenings and a group of renowned international wildlife photographers as speakers.

Howl will open on Friday evening with speaker John E. Marriott, a renowned author and ethical nature photographer from Alberta. On Saturday, the convention’s itinerary includes guided nature hikes in Algonquin Park and an interactive Q&A panel featuring speakers Sandy Sharkey, a world-renowned wild horse photographer, and Connor Thompson, a wolf biologist at the Algonquin Wildlife Research Station. Saturday night’s featured speaker is writer/ photographer and conservationist Melissa

Groo from upstate New York.

Early Sunday morning, participants will grab their cameras for a wildlife outing in the Park. A presentation by outdoor educator and wilderness guide Chris Gilmour will end the convention on Sunday afternoon. Speaker presentations will be at the Lester B. Smith Community Centre and all meals will be served at the Mad Musher Restaurant. Nightly music jams will happen at the outdoor campfire venue, Bongopix Tavern.

The idea for the Howl Convention started with Bongo. After buying an old Whitney cottage resort in 2015 and renaming it “Camp Bongopix,” the former wedding photographer’s quest was to hold events there. His mission resulted in Saturday jam nights and the annual Black Fly Festival. In early 2018, he noticed lots of nature photographers stayed in Whitney for quick access to the Park. Why not hold an event for photographers? Dunsford agreed and offered to help him to create a roster of food, speakers and outings. After almost a year of meetings, the first Howl Convention happened in October 2019.

“Our main objective was to create an event that would bring like-minded photographers together, from beginners to professionals, for networking, inspiration, good food, music and trips into Algonquin Park,” explains Dunsford. “By having a small group of people, everyone can meet each other. At the first Howl, there was a lot of interaction and new friendships. Many photographers now follow each other on social media.”

Photographers tend to work alone,

“Our main objective was to create an event that would bring like-minded photographers together, from beginners to professionals, for networking, inspiration, good food, music and trips into Algonquin Park,” but are a gregarious group when they get together. To keep things interesting, Dunsford and Bongo decided not to have guest speakers simply present their photos. Instead, the first Howl featured a mix of speakers like Randy Mitson talking about using marketing and social media, and Mark Peck, who is manager of the Schad Gallery of Biodiversity at the Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto.

Dunsford moved to Whitney 26 years ago when a friend who owned the Algonquin East Gate Motel wanted to semi-retire and asked for help with the place. For Dunsford, life in Whitney led to love and marriage to Dee Clarke, an Algonquin Park Warden and Interior Group Leader. Dunsford practised photography while working variously at the LCBO, as a canoe guide and, for seven winters, as a guide at a dog sledding company in Bancroft.

Tragically, his wife Dee died in January 2001 after the trail groomer she was riding in went through the ice on a lake in Algonquin Park. Not knowing what to do next, Dunsford took up a friend’s offer of a trip to India that July. It was a trip the friend had previously wanted to take with the couple.

“Looking back, it was an incredible trip,” recalls Dunsford. “We went on an 11-day trek through the Himalayans. I had a DSLR camera and took photos the whole time. At the 20,000-foot pass, all you could see was snow-capped peaks. I left a photo at that pass of Dee holding onto a moose as they were collaring him. I also left some prayer flags. Those are flags put up by Buddhists to send prayers and messages to heaven.”

Dunsford continued to travel to Ireland, Morocco, Spain and the USA while trying to figure out a new course for his life. When he finally came home to Whitney, the Parkland Restaurant was for sale. Though he had never even worked in a restaurant, Dunsford bought it. The eatery became The Mad Musher.

“The first few years were difficult because I had no clue what I was doing, but I figured it out,” chuckles Dunsford.

The photographer bought his first camera with 100 bubble gum wrappers and 50 cents when he was a kid in Los Angeles.

ABOVE LEFT: Great live music was one of the essential elements included in the plan by Dunsford and Bongo for an event that would bring together like-minded photographers, from beginners to professionals. (Photo: Bongopix) ABOVE new

Howl’s combination of fabulous food, a small group of participants that can get to know each other, and gathering for meals creates camaraderie as well as mutual inspiration.

His interest in nature photography awoke a decade ago after talking with wildlife photographers who came to his restaurant. Dunsford’s camera of choice was a Canon Rebel DSLR.

After meeting nature photographer Wesley Liikane through Facebook, Dunsford attended one of Liikane’s nighttime photography workshops in Algonquin Park.

“Being in the Park at night is a whole different experience,” he says. “I recommend anyone who loves to be out in nature to go out after dark. You hear animals and owls. When I’m photographing the Milky Way or the Northern Lights, it’s so serene.”

Dunsford’s wildlife images tell stories about animals’ lives. His photos show them eating, sleeping, playing with their young and being part of their environment instead of resembling posed portraits.

“Wildlife photography is about the eyes,” he says. “The animal’s eyes are what the viewer connects with most and gives emotion to the image. When I see an animal, I stand quietly and watch. Most will be aware I’m there but keep on with what they are doing. They realize I’m not a threat. To me, the ultimate is to be able to take photos with minimal impact while animals do their thing.”

Dunsford has been fortunate to encounter and photograph Algonquin’s elusive wolves. One evening, he howled towards a wolf pack that lives near the Park’s Eastern Gate. A long, low howl came back from nearby. Dunsford howled again and an entire pack howled back. He thought they might come his way to investigate, but none approached.

“Early the next morning, I walked on a path to a clearing in the same area and howled twice,” he recalls. “All of a sudden, I saw a wolf coming through the forest on the other side of the clearing. Then, there was another one and another and another. They all saw me and stopped. The first one looked at me while the others paced. When they realized I wasn’t a wolf, they turned around and disappeared instantly. I was excited but not afraid. It was amazing to see them so close up.”

Early one snowy April morning, Dunsford took the first photo that proved wolves seek out beaver lodges in the winter. His images show a wolf on top of a lodge with another wolf walking in front