Wildsnapping

Author Richard Louv uses this term to describe children and adults taking pictures of the nature around them. Wildsnapping blends children’s attraction to technology with the richness of the outdoors.

Since photography is free and handy with a phone, kids can experiment with all types of angles, subjects and locations. Even the backyard can be very photogenic!

Sometimes it helps to provide focus to the activity. Prompts like “take pictures of animal homes”, or “photograph examples of people affecting nature” can be helpful. Perhaps just asking kids to take pictures of interesting things may be enough.

Those pictures can be shared at home on a bigger screen, and pleasantly recap the outing. Some families have created digital scrapbooks of their nature excursions, or have used the photos in craft projects. The product isn’t really that important, though. It’s the time exploring the natural world with your child that yields the benefits.