Tip #1. Networking

This might seem an odd tip for successful wildlife photography, but for me it has been the most valuable. I network (bs) with a lot of other
photographers, friends, and even strangers to learn of areas with a strong potential for wildlife photography success. For example, when photographing in SW Florida and having mediocre success at locations like Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge and Audubon’s Corkscrew Sanctuary, I mentioned to a fellow photographer I was new to the area and not sure where to shoot other than the highly touted areas I had already visited. He replied with the advice to visit the Audubon Center and Rookery in Venice, Florida, about an hour’s drive from where Sham and I were staying. I visited that location that very afternoon a few hours before sunset and took over a thousand images. I was so impressed I made the two-hour round-trip drive another two times the following week. This wasn’t a highly touted area or one I would have known about had it not been for a friendly stranger’s recommendation. Shown is just one of the images from this location.

See my SW Florida online gallery for more images from this trip.
https://marlenkemmet.com/sw-florida/