With a Borrowed Camera, Pat Reeve Launched a Career

Pat and Nicole ReplayWidely regarded as two of the most knowledgeable bowhunters in the industry, Pat and Nicole Reeve are well-versed in the art of deer hunting and now they’re sharing their expertise with a new audience in a new book. Trophy Whitetails with Pat and Nicole Reeve offers fans of Driven TV and hunters around the country the chance to learn more about the dynamic duo, their rise to fame and their favorite tips for increasing a hunter’s chances in the field.

Outdoor writer Duncan Dobie guides readers through the Reeve’s personal history. The book details the couple’s hunting exploits, including a five-year adventure hunting bucks in Saskatchewan and their annual fall tradition of traveling from state to state tagging huge bucks for the cameras. Their experiences in the field make Pat and Nicole Reeve uniquely qualified to help hunters at any level improve their strategies and skills.

In Trophy Whitetails, readers will get an exclusive look at the tactics that led to those big-game successes. Pat and Nicole share their most successful hunting strategies to tag the trophy buck of any hunter’s dreams. Hundreds of stunning photos accompany the pair’s story and deer hunting advice. Plus, readers will gain access to more than 25 links to bonus video footage of the monster white-tailed deer taken by the Driven TV team.

Look for excerpts from the book to be featured in this blog through the spring and summer of 2014. The following is from Chapter 3:

Pat-Reeve-Chapter-321Pat’s outdoor interests were always multilayered and went far beyond being just a hobby. Spawned by the early childhood hunts with his father, during his late teens he developed a burning passion for hunting whitetails, especially with a bow. He also developed a deep love for turkeys and turkey hunting as a result of his trapping days. In truth, he loved all wildlife, and had a deep desire to learn as much as he could about every facet of nature. For a time after college he worked for the DNR as a naturalist.

During his high school years, Pat also developed a deep interest in photography. One year the Minnesota Deer Hunters Association sponsored a photo contest. A friend of Pat’s had acquired a very young fawn, and Pat thought it would be neat to take some pictures of it. Since he didn’t own a good camera, he borrowed a 35mm camera from his stepfather Mikael Newman. Pat took some photographs of the fawn and submitted one to the photo contest. To his utter surprise, he won the contest and some nice prizes!

But along with his prize-winning photo came some animosity and jealousy from several local people. “Anybody can take a picture of a tame deer,” someone commented. “But it’s a little different with wild deer.”

Pat-Reeve-Chapter-315Pat had not tried to deceive anyone. He had simply taken some pictures of a beautiful little creature. But now, as far as he was concerned, the proverbial gauntlet had been thrown down. He was determined to show his critics that he could take pictures of wild deer as well. More than anything else, though, he wanted to prove to himself that he could do it since he also prided himself on being a deer hunter. The 27,000-acre Whitewater Wildlife Management Area was located only 10 minutes from Pat’s house. The park teemed with mature whitetails and inside the boundaries of the WMA was a 2,700 acre state game refuge where no hunting was allowed. Not surprisingly, smart bucks from surrounding areas swarmed into the park during hunting season.

With his borrowed 35mm camera, Pat went out and started stalking some of the big bucks in the refuge. He got lucky right away and took some amazing photos of several mature bucks. It didn’t take him long to see that he needed a telephoto lens for his borrowed camera, so he saved up $350 and bought a Sigma 400mm lens. He continued to get decent photos, but the perfectionist in Pat quickly made him realize that he couldn’t shoot the magazine-quality photos he desired unless he bought some very expensive camera equipment.

During the summer, most of the big bucks left the state park, so Pat went out into mosquito infested swamps of the WMA and began to get images of several large bucks in velvet that he saw on a regular basis. One he named “Garth” after Garth Brooks. The country legend was very popular at the time, and Pat named the buck Garth because the big deer had a “cowboy-hat-style” set of antlers resting on top of his head. Garth was a wide 8-pointer that actually became quite well known in the area after some of Pat’s photos started circulating around. Pat also snapped photos of a buck he called “Elvis” and one he called “Hank.”

Pat-Reeve-Chapter-322Soon he was framing some of his photos and selling them in Mauer’s Tavern, a local gathering place where Pat and his friends often got together. That fall, Pat shot a nice buck with his bow on the first weekend of the season while hunting with his dad. Since his buck tag was filled, he decided to spend the remainder of the season in the state game refuge photographing bucks.

“It was just like hunting them with a bow,” Pat remembered. “I had so much fun that fall taking pictures and I got some really neat photos.” When the time came for him to return his borrowed camera, he was left with a lens and no camera.

About that same time, a newspaper reporter for the Rochester Post Bulletin came out to interview Pat about how he was able to get so many good pictures of wild bucks. “He wanted to know what kind of camera I was using and I didn’t even own one at the time,” Pat remembers. “It was quite embarrassing.”

Still Interested? Of Course You Are, So Check This Out 

CLICK THE BOOK TO ORDER

Trophy Whitetails with Pat and Nicole Reeve by Duncan Dobie takes a page out of the Driven TV stars’ book, guiding you through their history and making suggestions for effectively hunting trophy whitetails.

As one of the most knowledgeable bowhunters in the industry, Pat has plenty of experience to pull from, including time as an expert videographer and renowned hunting celebrity and producer. Let Pat and Nicole’s journey guide your own as their stories help form hunting tips and advice for your own experiences.

In this great book you’ll find:

  • 25+ links to bonus video footage of the monster bucks taken by the Driven TV team
  • Hundreds of stunning color photos
  • An inside look at the Driven TV team’s successful hunting strategies

 

 

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