Texas' natural beauty on display at state capitol thanks to Richard Raymond

Commemorative photo book published by Images for Conservation Fund

From The Austin American-Statesman By John Martin

Visitors to the Texas Capitol this week will have the opportunity to view some of the most beautiful nature photographs in the world all photographed in Texas. However, the purpose of the exhibit is not to show pretty pictures but to promote an opportunity.

Thanks to support from Rep. Richard Peña Raymond, D-Laredo, the Images for Conservation Fund will be displaying images taken during the group's three Pro-Tour of Nature Photography contests. The display will include photographs taken in the Hill Country, the Coastal Bend and the Laredo borderlands.

The Images for Conservation Fund was established to foster greater wildlife preservation by promoting photo tourism on private land. The nonprofit organization hopes to encourage private landowners to allow nature photographers from around the world onto their land. In doing so, they would be promoting wildlife conservation and providing economic benefits to the area.

To promote this concept, the conservation fund established the Pro-Tour of Nature Photography, a world-class championship tournament that matches some of the world's best professional nature photographers with landowners who have taken steps to create a habitat conducive for wildlife photography.
The photographers and the landowners work in partnership to ensure that images taken during the 30-day contest reflect the beauty of the area.

You can read the entire article at:
http://www.statesman.com/opinion/martin-texas-landowners-welcome-different-kind-of-shooters-1291007.html