Ronan Donovan Instagram – I’m sharing some older images from 2014 and notes from an IG takeover for @ilcp_photographers. ⁣ ⁣ \\ In my previous posts I’ve shown some single images and a couple series on a specific species with the camera trap images. But what’s been lacking in my imagery so far is a story. For those of you asking for advice on this career path, storytelling is one of the most important elements. While a single image can be powerful and can weave a story into its elements, the real power of visual storytelling comes from a series of images, a photo essay. That’s where emotion, context, purpose and impact come into visual storytelling and it was the single biggest ‘aha moment’ for me. I still have much to learn. ⁣⁣⁣ ⁣ ⁣⁣These images represent one of my first attempts at thinking like a storyteller rather than just going out to get pretty photos or a single image of an animal. In 2014, still working as a biologist, I was asked to be part of a team here in Montana that was surveying bat caves ahead of the anticipated arrival of White-Nose Syndrome – a non-native fungus that has been decimating bat populations across the US since it’s discovery in 2006. This post is less about White-Nose Syndrome and more about storytelling and the kinds of images that are common in most visual stories. ⁣⁣⁣ Photo 1 – The team descends into the first of two cave rooms on their way down to the main room – this is an establishing image to set the scene for the images to come⁣⁣⁣ Photo 2 – A member of the team counts hibernating bats as one flies by – a medium image with multiple elements ⁣⁣⁣ Photo 3 – The outstretched wing of a Myotis species of bats for measuring⁣⁣⁣ Photo 4 – A cluster of Myotis species of bats – a portrait or character image ⁣⁣⁣ Photo 5 – Team members swabbing bats for fungus testing – an interaction image of people doing something⁣⁣⁣ Photo 6 – Sunrise over the Missouri River in central Montana – closing image of the bat’s habitat⁣⁣⁣ ⁣ For the aspiring conservation photographers out there, think about the stories that you can tell close to home.