Readers of The Richmond News might have seen our daily Good Morning, Richmond (GMR) posts at Richmond-News.com featuring snapshots of the breathtaking scenery around the city. GMR started in 2021 and has featured more than 400 photos so far.
As we look towards the new year, we wanted to learn more about our regular contributors. Readers of GMR may have stared in awe at bird photos featured in the morning post, some of which were taken by Anabelle Wee.
Wee, a long-time Richmond resident, developed an interest in birding and bird photography during the spring of 2021.
And it was all thanks to the Anna Hummingbird that frequented her home.
“My husband and I noticed there were many beautiful Anna Hummingbirds in our Richmond neighbourhood and at the nearby Garden City Lands,” said Wee.
Wee became frustrated when she wasn’t able to take “the perfect shot” of the hummingbird with her cellphone and proceeded to borrow her daughter’s digital camera.
The thrill of seeing the final photos became the reason for Wee to continue the hobby.
“We loved seeing these beautiful birds during our walks. From there, our love for birding grew."
Wee began submitting photos to the Richmond News’ website when fellow Richmond photographer and good friend Caroline Sayson suggested it.
“It’s been once a week for the past 10 months, and I’m wondering if I can last at least a year with my photos being featured once a week with the Richmond News,” she said.
Wee, who retired from nursing in 2018, told the Richmond News she never thought of becoming an avid bird photographer, but that changed during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Since travel restrictions due to the Covid pandemic meant staying closer to home, birding allowed my husband and I opportunities to explore areas in the lower mainland and Vancouver Island where different birds may be found,” she said.
She described her new-found hobby as “thrilling” especially when she began learning to take photos of birds in mid-flight.
“Trying to take a picture of a fast, flying hummingbird definitely was a challenge. But it was a grand feeling of accomplishment when I learned how to do it.”
One year later, Wee owns her own camera and is often spotted with her long 100-400mm zoom lens around Richmond’s dykes and Garden City Lands in search of birds and animals to photograph.
Her photos were only posted to social media to share with friends and family until she submitted a few to a BC SPCA photo contest. While her photo didn’t win, BC SPCA was inspired by her ring-billed seagull photo and featured it for their T-shirt idea.
“Richmond has an abundance of animals and nature that people don’t realize we have. I want to showcase this to the community.”
