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 138 THE CONDOR of specimens to lie hidden away in some cabinet. Of course the latter is essential but not to such an extent as it is carried on by some people, while the former when it becomes more general will open up a much broader and more interesting field of work. The difficulties of getting good pic- tures, as one will find by experience, are exceedingly numerous, yet the ability Vol. III is uttedy incapable of showing some birds to any advantage unless a suitable back. ground can be secured. Besides the difficulty of back-ground there is always an equal one of .getting the proper light at the proper time, and the subject is not very often found in a con- venient place to take a picture. In a time exposure, which is often necessary, a slight move at the critical moment YOUNG to overcome the many obstacles and se- cure a good representation of the sub- ject places a just value upon tl/e re- sults. The display of a few good bird plates does not in any way indicate the amount of time that the photo- grapher may have spent in getting them or the number 'of other plates that may have been wasted. Nature has provided her creatures vith wonderful protection as to coloring and the camera often spoils a plate. Collecting a good series of bird photographs differs from gathering eggs and skins, in that good pictures of even the commonest birds are still rare and so the photographer does not have to go far to find subjects for study. The interest in bird photography has spread very rapidly in the east and many valuable pictures have been tak- en, but as yet little has been done among