Trailcam to Canvas
Whitetail Deer
It's late October in Iowa and the winds are calm and cool. A bowhunter climbs into an old oak and settles in for his afternoon vigil. Peering into the hardwoods, he takes in the colors of late fall and notices the Hunter's Moon rising in the east well before sundown. As the evening shadows grow longer and the last rays of light fade in the west, his ears capture footsteps upon fallen leaves. Turning to his left, the bowhunter sees long tines drifting through the timber just before a giant whitetail steps into the fading light. Coming to full draw he patiently waits and hopes the giant stays the course--and that his arrow flies true.
These were the events I experienced in the fall of 2018 on a late October evening in the Hawkeye State. After writing the story the editor asked if I had any photos of the buck and I explained that I didn’t have many. I only had one daylight photo of him--which I ironically captured the same night that he entered the field. Unfortunately, this photo was rather dark so I tried to enhance the color before I sent it to the editor.
What I saw next had me speechless.
The giant buck, which we later weighed at 271 pounds, was now more visible, but my eyes also caught a flash of orange in the tree above him. What materialized was a bowhunter at full draw, hidden among the oak leaves, and perfectly centered in a small opening as if rehearsed for a photo session. The trail camera I had set up, and at the time had forgotten about, somehow captured the EXACT moment just before I released my arrow--an image I couldn't recreate in 10 lifetimes.
Many of my friends advised me to try and find an artist who would recreate the scene and draw an oil painting of that fateful night. Nearly one year later, I decided to reach out to Dallen Lambson in Idaho. I shared the story via email and Dallen returned my message the following week. He loved the story and had an idea of how to incorporate the moon, colors and bowhunter into a memorable scene.
I'm proud to share with you the finished version of Dallen Lambson's "Hunter's Moon." The moon and buck steal the show...with just a hint of a bowhunter with big dreams hidden in the shadows. I wanted to share it with you guys along with the photos that inspired the piece and hope you like it!
Now that is cool! Nice buck congrats!
It’s nice to see Artistic License being taken by someone who is qualified to hold one!
Kind of a shame he painted you holding a compound, though…
;)
That is awesome. Love the painting, but that trail cam pic is priceless.
That is pretty cool! I wish I had an artistic eye and hand.
Beautiful buck and painting. Congratulations on both.
Nice everything, story and painting.
Awesome!!! I’m a big fan of his Dads work and have a couple of his framed prints. It looks like the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree. Talented artist.
Incredible
Super nice Eyad!
As always amazing !! Thanks for posting !! Hunter
Love the art and story that went into this!
That’s incredible! One of a kind for sure! Congrats !
Really cool. Looks great too
Sweet! That is honoring the animal and expressing your passion.
Awesome all around! Great painting to capture that memory too
Beautiful. Simply. Beautiful. Thanks for sharing!
Very unique experience, I love the painting!
That right there is priceless! Congrats on the awesome buck and sharing the memory.
Way cool, Eyad….wow! That buck is a tank, too!
Paul@thefort needs to have that done with his elk pic!
Very good ! That’s not something that gonna happen very often, thanks for sharing with us.
Eyad, that is simply outstanding.
Stunning and awesome in every way!
Nobody will ever replicate that. Simply spectacular
That's bad ass! Well done!
Thanks guys! Really appreciate it:)
Amazing way to relive your hunt! Congrats
with Eyad's permission, I post this trail cam pic with me in the back ground in tree stand and hit elk 2 seconds before, Elk dead in 40 yards.. Paint a picture opportunity. Paul
with Eyad's permission, I post this trail cam pic with me in the back ground in tree stand and hit elk 2 seconds before, Elk dead in 40 yards.. Paint a picture opportunity. Paul
That's awesome! There was a man in OK that painted horses on feathers and I had him paint a gobbler's head on a tail feather I had and it turned out real nice, great way to remember the hunt!
What an Artist!
Very talented for sure.
Good luck, Robb
Very cool Paul! Thanks for sharing:)
Beautiful rendering of that sacred moment...outstanding!
That is awesome! Not an artistic bone in my body but always admired and envied those that have it.
Eyad, that’s spectacular. Congratulations to you, and Dallen. Absolutely incredible!
Eyad, Thanks for sharing. The pictures, artwork, and your words describing the hunt are priceless.
That painting is unbelievable. You certainly picked the right artist for the job. Every time you look at that work of art, you should remember that wonderful hunt.
