There’s nothing better than a picture perfect moment of you sporting a flashy smile and cradling the antlers of your trophy. It’s truly a never forgotten memory that will last years to come. With a simple click of a shutter, you can capture that day’s emotion forever. All it takes is a descent camera, a little practice and the right gear to make your “Money Shot!”

Time seems to pass quickly, as does our memory. Each and every animal I kill is photographed like ‘Britney Spears’. I will usually go through 30-40 pictures of each kill and come up with only 2-3 perfect pictures that ultimately satisfy my picky attitude towards a great photograph. I take a paparazzi approach to my photography methods. Taking pictures at each and every angle of a deer’s rack, from a low angle to a high angle, there’s no piece of brown hair that hasn’t been photographed by the time I’m done!

I’ve been fortunate to learn from many of the outdoors leading professional cameraman and writers of what exactly to look for in a good photo. Although, there are literally a million things to learn in the art of photography, here are a few basics that anyone can use to their advantage.

Nobody wants to see a bloody animal with its tongue hung out, especially if they aren’t hunters. We must take every step of caution to show that we do respect each and every critter we kill.

Each time I venture a field to go hunting or scouting, I toss a camera in my gear bag and zip-loc it in a plastic bag. Moisture and camera equipment don’t mix. I use a Cannon Rebel XTI, which is expensive, but a very nice camera nonetheless. If you aren’t willing to pay for a semi-professional camera, a 4-8 mega-pixel digital will be just fine!

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I always will bring a package of wet wipes to clean the deer’s face, upper shoulder and any other noticeable flaws that really stand out and can distract an onlooker. I’ll also carry a pair of glass deer eyes that you can purchase out of any taxidermy magazine. They are cheap and pay for themselves after the first few photos you take of your animal. You can simply slip the glass eyes over the eyes to diminish the ‘foggy glare’ look. Not only will this make your deer look much more lifelike, but fades the smoky eye look.

As of anytime I go hunting, I’ll always bring a knife. This is one of the most useful and helpful aids when away from civilization. Someone once told me to slice off a deer’s tongue so it doesn’t dangle out of its mouth bloody red. They couldn’t be more right.

Now that you have the basic of what to bring into the field for photo preparation, it’s time for positioning the animal. Depending on what you are taking a photo of, whether a turkey, deer or fish, photos can be deceiving and easily manipulated. It’s always nice to prop deer up in a bedding position and crouch either pretzel legged or low to the ground behind the body. This leaves the rack sky-lined, which if pictured at a low angle can make your deer look another 20 inches bigger! Also, pushing the object toward the camera and backing yourself up making you look tiny has always been used as a size trick.

When photographing turkeys, open his wings and spread his tail fan. It’s important to exemplify the simple beauties and when done correctly, the colors will look glittery and amazing. It’s essential to show-off what your animal is worth. It doesn’t matter if it’s a spike buck or a 50-inch musky, photographing wasn’t made for showing size, but rather the emotions, feelings and expressions people have doing what they love to do. A simple second froze in time that has the ability to make our hearts sink and cheeks perk.

Often times we remember the kill for a specific reason. For instance, my Nebraska Merriam turkey was shot in the middle of an open prairie. So, I photographed the bird with a scenic background of where I shot it to give me the exact feeling I felt as everything unraveled. Countryside is beautiful, but using other background objects such as barns, fence lines and creeks are just as nice.

Taking pictures of your animal sounds like a lot of extra work and time, it is. Nonetheless, it is something that you can cherish, show others and remember for years to come. Photos often times say more than words ever do.

Be creative in your shooting. Don’t be afraid to take a lot of photos, try new things and be original. Remember, life is all about making memories and there’s nothing better to recall than a great kill.