Nature Meets Craft: Highlights from Our Wildlife Scavenger Hunt at Lake Merritt

This past Saturday, the Black Film Guild transformed the scenic Lake Merritt Gardens into an outdoor studio playground for our Wildlife Scavenger Hunt—a nature-infused journey featuring Canon’s top-tier “L-series” super-telephoto lenses and high-end EOS mirrorless bodies.

📸 Setting the Scene
Under calm skies at 600 Bellevue Ave, over 30 participants—from students to seasoned visual artists—gathered amidst Lake Merritt’s lush lagoon setting, recognized as America’s first official wildlife refuge en.wikipedia.org+8eventbrite.com+8linkedin.com+8. Pairing high-performance Canon gear with professional coaching, our goal was simple: give creatives a hands-on chance to capture local wildlife in action.

🦆 Gear & Guidance
We equipped each attendee with Canon’s full-frame mirrorless bodies and L-series super-telephotos—the same lenses used by pros for wildlife and sports photography . Seasoned mentors demonstrated techniques for panning, focus tracking, and exposure dialing. The instant the cameras were out, a wave of shutter clicks echoed across the shoreline. Every snap held the excitement of capturing a great egret’s wingbeat or a kingfisher diving into the water.

🔍 Scavenger Hunt in Action
Participants were tasked with photographing a curated wildlife checklist: waterfowl, herons, songbirds, and even the occasional squirrel darting along the path. The challenge seamlessly blended photography skill with natural curiosity, encouraging both composition and patience in the field.

🤝 Community & Mentorship
As cameras were passed between hopeful shooters, our mentors—professional filmmakers and wildlife photographers—offered coaching. One participant shared, “Using L-series glass for the first time, I finally saw what proper bokeh and sharpness feels like!” That kind of revelation fuels Black Film Guild’s mission: leveling access to industry-grade tools and expertise.

🎉 Standout Moments

Zoom mastery: Several participants nailed dramatic bird-in-flight shots with 400mm lenses.

• Creative framing: Someone managed an artistic silhouette of Mallards against the lake’s late afternoon glow.

• Peer support: Photographers swapped lenses mid-hunt; a sense of camaraderie buzzed through the group.

🌿 What It Meant
This scavenger hunt wasn’t just about wildlife—it was about nurturing confidence behind the lens. From carefully calibrating autofocus to anticipating wildlife behavior, attendees honed storytelling skills enhanced by nature’s spontaneity.

📅 What’s Next
We’re already planning a follow-up shoot designed to build participant reels—with a full client-driven production day for local environmental nonprofits. Stay tuned for announcements!

Huge thanks to everyone who attended. Whether it was your first wildlife capture or your fiftieth, we hope you walked away more skillful, inspired, and connected to both community and craft.