Wonderful nature: the impressive photos of the man from Mendoza who "hunts" birds and other species with his camera

Carlos Schmidt jaguar.jpg

“For several years I have been dedicating myself to photography as a professional hobby. I don’t make money from it, but rather it is a hobby . And what I do is what is considered birdwatching , although I also consider myself a naturalist photographer , since I have photographed mammals as well,” describes the man, who lives in Godoy Cruz , referring to his great passion.

Quetzal - Carlos Schmidt.jpg

With the exception of Venezuela , Carlos has traveled –always with photography as his passion and camera in hand- throughout South America . Ecuador, Costa Rica (where he observed the impressive quetzal ) and several excursions to the Amazon have been some of his adventures, some of which are recorded in his photos .

He even got lost once in the middle of the Peruvian Amazon while following a bird that was jumping from branch to branch high up in the trees !

Although his main focus is birds (species that keep him awake and capture his full attention, hence his hobby as a “birdwatcher” ), Carlos Schmidt has also had the opportunity to photograph other very important mammals .

In addition to the already mentioned jaguar – one of the most endangered species in its ecosystem and difficult to register – there are also some tapirs .

Toucan - Carlos Schmidt.jpg

“Despite its low presence, the jaguar can be relatively easy to see if you go to the Mato Grosso swamp and are willing to put up with the mosquitoes and humidity ,” Schmidt says, laughing. “Because the jaguar feeds on the caiman and the capybara , and it finds them there,” he continues.

And he recapitulates the moment already detailed in which he was able to photograph a jaguar lurking among the vegetation, prior to the failed hunt of the alligator . Because the alligator escaped by getting involved in the aquatic plants of the place, and only a whirlpool of water and mud remained in the place.

But Schmidt , who had gone to that extreme in search of a photo of a jaguar and a Hyacinth Macaw , returned smiling and “hopping,” as he himself describes. Because he got both photos .

Carlos' holidays have always been about adventure and going into national parks to "hunt" birds with his camera . There will be time to lie down and sunbathe on the beach later.

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Between 1993 and 1994 , on a trip to Costa Rica , Schmidt sighted and photographed an example of the amazing Quetzal . And in that same country, a few months ago, he experienced the immense joy of photographing a Seven-colored Bluebird , a migratory bird that he had gone to look for especially on that trip.

“I have also had the opportunity to travel to Europe . I have traveled to Spain especially to take photos of the famous migration of birds from Europe to Africa . It is a phenomenon that is usually seen at the southernmost point of Spain , where the Rock of Gibraltar is. And there you can see eagles, sparrowhawks and other species while they migrate. I was able to take many photos there,” describes the engineer and photography enthusiast.

For years, Carlos was not at all bothered by walking 20 or 30 kilometers deep into the jungle , carrying heavy cameras and tripods . Nowadays, after years of doing his thing, he has had to reduce these expeditions a little. But, camera in hand, he will always enjoy going on a “photo safari” like few other things, and – above all – if he has to let himself be carried away by nature .

“There are some creatures that are very difficult to see , but that have no appeal in terms of their plumage or colors . But that doesn’t take away the excitement,” he describes. He adds that a few days ago, together with his friend and also “birdwatcher” Martín Pérez , they traveled to Paso Vergara (border between Argentina and Chile to the south of Mendoza) to photograph the Andean Yal . And they succeeded!

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In addition to the intrinsic adrenaline of entering the jungle , there is also the added value of many bird specimens enjoying this inhospitable environment. In fact, in some ecosystems in Ecuador and Colombia , characterized by being “deep in the jungle,” there are between 30 and 40 types of hummingbirds that have to be sought out by photographers and they stay away from feeders (structures that are installed to attract some birds).

“It's like collecting figurines , you have the easy ones , the difficult ones and the impossible ones . There are birds, for example, that have been photographed twice in their lives and are considered extinct until someone sees them again,” explains the photographer .

And he clarifies that the “most difficult figurine” in his collection, the one he considers the most sought after, is the last one he obtained and, at the same time, the bird he has not yet found .

Throughout his life as a nature photographer and birdwatcher , Carlos Schmidt has his own collection of anecdotes and unforgettable moments. But, without a doubt, among those he will never forget is the one that left him lost for almost two hours in the Peruvian Amazon .

“Thank God I found a guide who found me. The thing is that you get so obsessed with following a bird , and you see that it is jumping from tree to tree , so you keep following it looking up. Of course it jumps west, then east, then south. And when you look down , you don’t know where you are,” he recalls about those almost 120 minutes lost.

Sword-billed Hummingbird - Carlos Schmidt.jpg

The darkness of the jungle , which results in the loss of any reference , also contributed to this moment of calm desperation. “Sometimes it rains in the Amazon and you don’t even notice, because the vegetation is so thick that the water never falls,” he exemplifies.

Another anecdote , a little (quite a bit) quieter, that Schmidt remembers was when a Chinese man who lived in London , whom Carlos met through his passion for bird watching , traveled especially from the English capital to Mendoza to stay in the Mendoza man 's old house (in Chacras de Coria) to photograph the comet hummingbird .

“It is a species that is not seen there, but it is in all the gardens here!” he adds.

In addition to uploading photos to his Instagram profile @schmidtcarlos7 , his records have been published on scientific dissemination sites ( Ecoregistros and e-Bird , among others). In addition, he has collaborated with bird guides , sharing his experience and his passion.

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Carlos is always thinking about his next trip, his next adventure , what his next “photo hunt” will be. Right now, for example, he is planning a trip to Australia and New Zealand . And he even dares to dream out loud.

“My dream now is to be able to go to Papua New Guinea and Borneo and photograph birds of paradise . They are the ones that do a spectacular courtship display, opening their feathers,” adds Schmidt.