Tim Christie’s adventures in search of the perfect wildlife photo have taken him to all sorts of destinations in all types of weather. His encounters are generally peaceful although one particular grizzly did chase him up a tree.
Photo by Tim Christie
est successful shots was of a “hand- some” mountain goat standing on a rock in British Columbia, which he was able to capture only after care- fully walking along a narrow, goat- sized ledge. But his interest in photogra- phy and the outdoors goes back years earlier to his childhood in Butte, Mont. “I was raised in a family that was outdoors-oriented — my ear- liest memories are of fishing trips when I was only 3-4 years old,” he said. “My teenage years were spent hunting and fishing. I read maga - zines like Outdoor Life, Field and Stream and Sports Afield cover to cover every month.”
When his son was born, he had an Instamatic camera, but wasn’t happy about its quality. “I talked to the photography in- structor at North Idaho College, and he prompted me to buy a 35mm camera,” he said. “What I found my- self doing when I went hunting and fishing is spending more of my time photographing than anything else.” Over the years, this has trans- lated to more than 240,000 images, including 125,000 transparencies, prints, slides and hard drives. (He stopped using film in the ear - ly 2000s). Altogether, he has more than 5,000 deer shots and 7,000 bull elk shots alone. When he wasn’t shooting, he had
multiple roles at NIC for 35 years, including communications facul- ty and college relations. His wife Kathleen also worked there for many years in different teaching and leadership roles. Since 2013, both have enjoyed be- ing snowbirds, preferring to spend winters in Arizona and return to Coeur d’Alene in the spring. “I’m not a big fan of gray,” he said. The warmer conditions also give him access to different types of wildlife to photograph — he recent- ly spent time shooting a dozen bur- rowing owls. The Arizona sky also provides different conditions to create photos.
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