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Months ago I joined a photography group sponsored by Art's Cameras. The short name for it is the FOCUS group. (Pretty catchy, Huh!) 
I finally had the opportunity to participate in one of their outings. (scheduling conflicts). Imagine that, retired and I still have scheduling conflicts. Ha, Life is Good!
Back to the Big Cats.
The FOCUS group worked with WISCONSIN BIG CAT RESCUE and EDUCATIONAL CENTER in Rock Springs WI. They arranged for two groups of photographers (about twenty folks each) to get access to photo the cats and each group received a personal tour by the staff. The tours are interesting in that they provide an explanation of each group of animals. Such as specific type of cat, what they eat, where the came from, their natural history and an example of how each interacts with their handlers.
The photographers gathered at Art's Waukesha store at about 8:00am. We formed our carpools and headed out for the Baraboo area. I was fortunate to have 3 great companions. Linda, Kelly and Gina.
We opted for the scenic route and enjoyed Lodi and the Merrimac ferry across the Wisconsin River. Then a short drive thru Devils lake State Park along the south shore of the lake and on toward Rock Springs. It should be noted that this intrepid crew had only one reroute along our whole route. That was in Rock Springs itself. Seems yours truly couldn't find Ash Street. We made it to the Center just on the outskirts of town. Elapsed drive time including reroute was about an hour and a half.
I believe this is "Ozzie". His pose seemed to describe the weather for the day. It was sunny and warm with just a tad too much humidity. Jeff and Jenny (The founders of Big Cat Rescue) were excellent hosts and even better tour guides. We borrowed lens and tripods (supplied by Art's staff) and off we went in search of perfect images.
After some hours of fantastic photography and the tour that highlighted our afternoon, our lil group decided we were ready to head home. Actually, we were ready to get a bite to eat then head out. We had an uneventful ride back to Waukesha. That is if you don't consider the blinding rain and 60mph winds just outside of Madison.
The FOCUS group is a free service of ART'S CAMERAS and is open to all photographers.
For more images from other members of the group check out the photos on Arts facebook page:
Wisconsin Big Cats Rescue and Educational Center can be found at: WWW.WISCONSINBIGCATS.ORG
Finally, I want to add a humungous THANK YOU to ART's staff and BIG CAT RESCUE for putting together a great event, I look forward to the next FOCUS GROUP outing.
Barring Schedule conflicts that is. ;)
