Hunters Journal Issue 11

Man, I have to start this one off by thanking our contributors. I’m not sure if many of you realise, but under the Hunters Journal umbrella, there’s quite a lot more than just photographing hunts and putting them into print. So in all honesty, this issue has been massively carried by our contributors. It’s crazy to think that when I started this magazine about 90% of the stories I had to photograph. Now I think that’s flipped, and instead 90% of the stories are from our contributors. They’re the ones to thank for carrying the extra weight of a camera just so they can share with you their knowledge and experiences.

Meanwhile, we’ve been doing a lot of video, photo and marketing work for other brands in the hunting scene. And not to mention our movie nights which involve so much more work than you would think. And because we’re taking on so much, I feel like sometimes I neglect our audience and readers, so my goal is that one day we can have more time to share what goes on behind the scenes and be more interactive. 

Basically, the point of this message is that although sometimes we’re quiet, we’re actually working away behind the scenes with the main goal of creating content and art that you all enjoy. And through this whole process, I’ve started to shift the goals for this magazine. Originally I wanted this platform to grow into a full-time job that could also support my basic personal goals like buying a house, supporting a family, buying a motorbike – all that normal stuff. But now I feel like I want the Hunters Journal to be 100% about other creators and hunters. I want it to be a platform that just reinvests in itself so it can be this machine that helps to fund other creatives in the hunting industry but keeping the same goal in mind that we’ve had from the start – telling real stories of real hunters. But in the most engaging way possible. 

Although the magazine is all about past hunts, in this section I get to share about what’s happening in the future. But I can’t tell you too much and give everything away. What we’re working on is worth waiting for! Some of it involves sponsoring a few photographers to help them fund their missions, and the rest is mostly based around the movie night. We’ve already started filming one of our short films and already I can see it’s going to be one of the most interesting and edgy hunting films. And to give you an idea of what goes into it, we spent three days filming in Wanaka just to have 3 minutes of edited footage. And those three days don’t include any pre-production. But we’re going to be filming the rest of that first film in May – while hunting Chamois. The second film we’re creating will begin at the end of March. We’ll be filming two absolute classic hunters – Khan Adam and Jared Hammond as they chase red stags. And as we get closer to the trip I get more and more nervous about it. Partly because filming a hunt can be really physically demanding, but also because so much rides on the hunt going well. After all the expenses and sweat, all I can hope for is that the animals play ball. And if the animals do come out to play, then we’re in for an absolute treat. But never forget these projects are supported by some incredible brands. And by supporting them and purchasing their great kit, means they’ll continue to invest in our industry. So a massive thank you to the team at Outdoor Sporting Agency, Ridgeline, Sauer, Zeiss and Blaser. 

So for now, we’re going to let you carry on to enjoy the stories these pages hold, and we’ll care on working on the epic projects that we’ll soon share. 

Cheers legends. 

Cam