Cascade man reflects on years of wildlife photography

CASCADE, Iowa (AP) - When Herb Lange sits in the recliner in his assisted-living apartment, he can almost travel back to his photo days in his solitary camouflaged blinds, deep in the Midwestern woods.

There's a camera on the floor to his left, easily within reach. On his right sits a recorder with a variety of animal sounds. A nearby coffee table boasts a $3,000 pair of binoculars and a goose-down coat.

And in front of him, beyond his orthopedic walker, are dozens of wildlife photographs on bookshelves, walls and leaning against closet doors. A closer inspection reveals bins and bins of photos - an estimated 2,000. Many are award-winners.

"My favorite thing to photograph is the gray fox," he tells the Telegraph Herald (http://bit.ly/1yMmXI9), eager to talk about his everlasting true love. He points to a print on a shelf. "That one there of the red fox ... it has 14 pups."

Herb, 77, is so proud of where he was born and raised, he sports an "I love Kieler" button on his heavily worn sweatshirt. Well-known around the tri-states, he started taking wildlife photographs when he was 30, after his best days as a semi-pro pitcher.

"My catcher was John Richard. We were one of the best batteries of our time," he remembers. No other batteries are on hand to debate baseball with him.

That was back in the 1950s and '60s. Five years ago, his wife, Carol, passed away. Since then, his debilitating diabetes neuropathy has gotten the best of him.

But Herb doesn't have time to talk about any of that.

"The best time to shoot the gray fox is in December and January. With pups, it's the first two weeks of April." But he says you can't procrastinate.

"Coyotes will kill (the pups). Fourteen pounds is the largest one to ever be photographed." Then he plays a recording of gray fox pups screaming and baby raccoons crying, both effective but rather annoying to the human ear.

It's obvious Herb has done lots of preparation and research on wildlife. It was for his hunting hobby, as well. Before another question can be asked, he picks up a notebook and begins to read more on the gray fox.

Politely interrupted, Herb acknowledges that his photographs have won awards and were printed in a variety of wildlife magazines. He grabs one from the floor as evidence. That train of thought doesn't last long, though.

"My favorite time to shoot photos is when the leaves are off the trees and when there are no kids out there in the way," he says. "Kids won't go out when it's below zero."

Other residents can view his photographs without knocking on his door at the River Bend Retirement Community. About 20 are fastened to his entryway. There's ducks, bears, eagles, birds and, of course, foxes.

"I wish Herb would have been up here a couple of weeks ago," said longtime friend Julie Habel, of Luxembourg, Iowa. "I had some 'coons out on my porch."

Julie, also 77 and an accomplished photographer, met Herb through the Dubuque Camera Club "many, many, many years ago." Their passion for photos was stronger than other members, and they bonded.

"He showed me a lot of tricks of the trade as far as wildlife photos," she said. "I guess I showed him some things about photographing people and scenery without wildlife."

Herb will never be without wildlife, or the pride of his era.

"Let me be," he says when asked if he needs help to get up for a photograph. "I can walk that far."

Once on his feet, he has access to more memories.

"See this black bear?" he asks after pulling a print out of a bin on the kitchen counter. "I took this photo in northern Minnesota."

Before the visit ends, Herb asks if it's possible to shoot photos of hummingbirds without using a flash. He's left with an opinion that pleases him, and it surely occupies his mind as he sits back down in his comfortable - and warm - blind.

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Information from: Telegraph Herald, http://www.thonline.com