People actually do this.

Hi phildunnit,

So true, so very true. The Big Year is such a special little film and I'm overjoyed to have discovered it.

Yeah I agree with you, although some would say that trying to take pictures takes away from the experience of the moment. I guess it depends on the context though.

There are people whose hobby it is to go out in the woods looking for Bigfoot. ("Squatching"). Some of these people are nutjobs, but others happily accept that there most likely is no Sasquatch out there, but it's fun to go out camping and try to find him. (It's just an excuse to go out camping with your friends.)

In the same sense, if you like camping out and exploring nature, trying to spot birds can be a fun game to play along the way. If you do that, then there's really no need to keep proof, because it's just a side game anyway.

What I find weird is when people would make the bird spotting the main objective, and at that point it seems to me like they've lost the plot a bit..

Also, it seems contradictory to say on hand "we don't require proof because it's an informal competition that's not important anyway" but on the other hand you have people chartering planes to Alaska just to increase their score by a few points.

Nuage,

I believe I understand your point. If I was into birding like my sister and brother-in-law are, I would definitely take lots of pictures (although nowhere near as many as he takes).

However, in my years of traveling about the country, and doing other things, I have fully observed many people very happy doing whatever it is and NOT interested in taking pictures, or in taking only a few.

One example: In years of coaching youth baseball teams, some parents would take a few dozen pictures at each game, while others were happy to get one individual photo by the guy who took the team pictures for the league. They'd come to every game but never took any pictures.

There are people who visit Niagara Falls, the Empire State Building, and other big attractions who enjoy the experience and never care to bring a camera along.

Thinking of them, I guess I understand the folks who would go look at birds, who might or might not keep careful lists of what they see, but who do not feel the need for taking pictures of them.

My relatives will go away for a weekend, or even a week or more to various states to see birds. I can see me trying to go with them. We might arrive at the site where we start watching and waiting, say 9 a.m. By about 10:45, I would be wondering what else we are going to do with the rest of the day because I've had enough of this.

It's fine for others, just not something I would be interested in for all that long.

To those who find it fascinating for hours and hours, I truly say: More power to you.

1.

Taking bird pics is not like taking a selfie.

You need special expensive equipment (telelens) to take photographs that picture the birds in a recognizable way.

The birds need to cooperate and get into a certain perimeter where you can click...etc...

If you wanna do that well, the hobby changes from birding into photography.

2.

Btw i understand that you don't get it, but birding should not be reduced to the competition that is shown in the movie (although these competitions certainly exist and are part of it; most birders can't afford the travelling shown in the movie and stay closer to their home)

For many birders, the objective is not to beat the number 755, nor too collect proof of the sightings, but just being outdoors and having the experience of searching for a particular species and then spotting it (it's a bit like hunting in that way)

It requires knowledge (knowing bird sounds, knowing the birds) and skill (assessing the terrain, knowing where to look...etc...)

The satisfaction is in being out in the wild (often with friends, often in beautiful terrain) and putting your observation skills at work.

Discovering a rare species gives you a certain thrill, that has nothing to do with competition or proving your observations...

3.

I know it's hard to explain to non birders, many of my friends have insisted on joining me on trips to find out what it's all about, mostly to be disappointed.

In my experience it's not something that you can get into so easily unless you're truly interested (the woman on the attu trip, who started full of good intentions, but got bored very quickly, was painfully recognizable)