Hunting for a great shot
Posted: February 23, 2010
Dan Witt, D.O., ’66, is a urologist who calls himself an “amateur photographer living in a great place with access to wonderful wildlife.” A hunter who always carried a camera, Dr. Witt says he “got serious about wildlife photography about a year ago, when I got a telephoto lens that let me get better images and learned enough about Photoshop and Elements to make them better.”
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We live in a time and world that is experiencing a “nature deficit,” he says. “People, especially their children, don’t know anything about the ways of the animals and birds that live here with us. I live in Hoisington, Kan., which is genetically attached to the Cheyenne Bottoms and Quivira Wildlife Refuge, major resting areas for the shore birds and migratory waterfowl in the Central Flyway. It is the responsibility of people living in this area to share the wonders that we can see every day with anyone who wants to see and learn and enjoy our treasures.”
A member of a photography club and several local and national organizations that protect and enhance the natural world, Dr. Witt says he’s not alone in his need to reconnect with nature. “I think the baby boomers are feeling the urge to refresh their connections with nature as they ‘mature,’ and they are coming here with cameras and bird lists and binoculars and spotting scopes to enjoy this view of nature. It is a pleasure to meet and greet them and make their visit the best it can be. Good photographs enhance their experience.”
His work also enhances his patients’ experiences.
“Very few physicians can get up at 7 in the morning, drive five minutes, and see all the things that I can while taking my Labrador for her morning run. It is impossible to do that and go to work at 8:30 or 9 and not have a good day. People come to my office to see what I have been hunting or photographing. It is a part of my life and my work and adds an element of ‘goodness’ that a lot of medical offices don’t have. It is fun for everyone. I am not commercial, have never sold a photograph, and enjoy the stories that are attached to each image.”
Dr. Witt uses Canon equipment.