As a child, David Stephenson developed a nearly simultaneous love for photography and for birds. Today, a typical day includes both of his passions. He’s a professor and photography adviser at the University of Kentucky, and racing pigeons live in a loft in his backyard. Stephenson buys and sells, breeds and raises, trains and races pigeons. He also photographs them. “I was uniquely poised to take these two passions and put them together and have something that no one else in the racing pigeon hobby would have,” he said. Stephenson posts photos to his Instagram account, @pigeonphotographer. He said he likes that with photography, he can freeze the motion of pigeons’ wings. “When you can freeze it, and really see what they look like, I think they’re really quite beautiful,” he said.
Story by Bailey Vandiver
University of Kentucky professor David Stephenson takes photos on his iPhone of his racing pigeons as they are released for training on Wednesday, Sept. 18, 2019, at the industrial park in Lebanon, Kentucky.
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David Stephenson examines the wing of one of his racing pigeons before training on Wednesday, Sept. 18, 2019, at Kastle Pigeon Loft in Lexington, Kentucky.
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Stephenson reaches for one of his racing pigeons on Friday, Sept. 20, 2019, at Kastle Pigeon Loft in Lexington, Kentucky.
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Stephenson feeds racing pigeon Kastle 1729 from his hand on Friday, Sept. 20, 2019, at Kastle Pigeon Loft in Lexington, Kentucky.
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Seventeen racing pigeons wait in a crowded crate to be released for training on Wednesday, Sept. 18, 2019, at the industrial park in Lebanon, Kentucky.
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