I recently had the delightful opportunity to photograph a curious young whitetail fawn at the Sequoyah National Wildlife Refuge in Oklahoma. As fawns begin to participate in more social activities around 6 months of age, they tend to be more playful, curious, and less fearful than adult deer.
I was driving along the auto tour road early one August morning when I noticed a fawn running toward my truck from the side of the road. It sprinted past me, then turned and ran back in my direction after going a short distance. Stopping just a few feet from my pickup, it stared at me for a minute or two before calmly walking back into the brush.
Thanks to having my camera gear ready on a bean bag draped over the open window, I was able to capture some great shots of this beautiful wild animal while it was so close. The curious fawn provided a wonderful photo opportunity!
Part of the fun of wildlife photography is having memorable encounters with animals like this in their natural habitats. I feel fortunate to have been in the right place at the right time to photograph this lovely whitetail fawn.
Steve Creek, Wildlife Photographer
Equipment Used:
- Camera: Canon EOS R5
- Lens: Canon EF 800mm f/11
Technical Details:
- Location: Sequoyah NWR, Oklahoma
- Date/Time: August 10, 2021, 8:12 AM
- Exposure Mode: Manual
- Aperture: f/11 (fixed)
- Shutter Speed: 1/640 sec
- ISO: 1000 (auto)
- Exposure Compensation: 0
- Focal Length: 800mm