Thanks for taking time to view my galleries. I hope you enjoy viewing them as much as I did taking them.

I am a lifelong resident of Southwest Virginia. I currently live in Chilhowie, VA with my wife Holly, and our daughter Blair, son Hank, two Labs (Hank and Rowdy), and a Boxer named Missy. I attended Virginia Tech where I earned a B.S. degree in Crop and Soil Environmental Science. I am currently working in agricultural research.

It was at Virginia Tech where I was first introduced to duck hunting by a fraternity brother and custom duck call maker, Brian Watkins. My new found love of waterfowling and ultimately my love of waterfowl, led to my interest in photography. After chasing 'fowl with both a shotgun and camera, I have come to the conclusion that making a good shot with a camera is a lot tougher than with the shotgun! However, I still enjoy sharing a blind with family, friends and a good retriever.

While I didn't start waterfowling until later in life, I have been a lifelong outdoorsman. My father and grandfather kept me in the woods and on the water. I grew up chasing squirrel dogs through the mountains in the fall and winter, and chasing river smallmouth in the warmer months. Most spare time was spent in the outdoors. I feel that the time I spent in the outdoors growing up, has been invaluable in my understanding of the natural world around me, and my desire to photograph it.

I enjoy photographing many different species of wildlife. All of the wildlife images on this page are of wild animals in their natural environment.

I also enjoy photographing hunting trips, and telling the story of the hunt through photography. I sometimes catch some slack from my hunting buddies when I drop the gun for the camera, but the rewards are well worth it! I particularly enjoy photographing working retrievers.

Again, I hope you enjoy viewing my galleries!

God Bless,

Eric

ericrutherford