Birder aims to revolutionize nature guides

Richard Crossley
Richard Crossley said he is a birder first and a photographer second. He has had to teach himself how to get the shots he needs for his ID guide. He says he wants to change the way people not only look at guidebooks, but nature overall.
Image courtesy Princeton University Press

Richard Crossley wants to revolutionize birding.

The British author has developed the Crossley ID Guide. Instead of having one picture of each bird, it presents multiple images taken from different distances and angles in carefully designed photo spreads.

Crossley went with Euan Kerr down by the Mississippi in St Paul to demonstrate how the guide works. The only problem was, they couldn't find any birds. Then three fowl-like shapes flashed overhead.

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