Liz Dack will be well known to many readers of this post. She is an exuberant evangelist for the cause of wildlife, a great supporter of Norfolk Wildlife Trust, excellent photographer, knowledgeable naturalist and jolly good company.
I first encountered Liz whilst working for NWT and helping to manage their Wildlife Information Service. Liz was a regular contributor of images to our wildlife gallery and she moved on to become an education volunteer. Over the past decade I’ve got to know her well and we have enjoyed many excursions into the wilds of Norfolk seeking out the wealth of wild creatures that abound. Liz has accomplished much and has a lot to tell, I’ll let her get on with it…..…..Oh and all the wildlife images accompanying this profile were taken by Liz except the bittern in black & white taken by Emma Turner.
What event triggered your interest in the natural world?
Spending holidays with my grandmother as a child. She would point out and name various garden birds and butterflies. She loved robins and thrushes. I always think of her when I hear a cuckoo. She would say ‘summer is on it’s way – the cuckoo has returned’! I love hearing the cuckoo for this reason.
Give a sketch of a typical day in your life
I love to get up at the crack of dawn. It’s a lovely time of the day to hear the birds sing and watch the sky colours change as the sun rises. Firstly I feed the birds and voles in my garden and check the night camera to see if any hedgehogs have visited our garden and eaten the food put out for them.
Mondays and Wednesdays I go out with my camera regardless of the weather! Rain or shine, there is always something to see and photograph. Maybe an otter will swim through, I may hear a bitten boom or take photos of dewdrops on rose hips.
You’ve worked in the education sector and volunteered for wildlife charities. What would you consider the most rewarding aspects of this work?
I find it rewarding to know my photographs and the work I do are used and appreciated. I like to inspire , encourage and to make a difference where I can. I want to encourage others to enjoy what I enjoy and to try new things. I feel most rewarded by the comments, remarks and confidence that Norfolk Wildlife Trust have given me. They constantly compliment me on my engagement with visitors at the events I work at and my photography, which they have published several times, for other magazines and newspapers as well as their own. As well as being Education Events Volunteer for them, they have also asked me to be a volunteer photographer on many occasions. I feel privileged to be asked to do this; as an amateur I never think of myself as a photographer, just as someone who loves nature and enjoys taking photos as a hobby. It’s great to be able to give something back.
What do you consider the greatest challenges facing wildlife today?
I think we humans are the greatest challenges to wildlife. We have taken their land to build houses. We have driven some of them from their natural habitats by doing away with hedges and putting up fences.
What do you consider to be your greatest success?
My greatest success has been bringing up my family, which also included being a foster mum for many years alongside my own children. I’ve worked with children with Special Educational Needs in school, and during this time I was also attending night school to study A Levels Art and a degree in Early Childhood Studies and Education. I graduated during the millennium.
Share with us some of your proudest moments.
Being invited to attend the Queen’s Garden Party in recognition of my work for various charities, fostering hedgehogs and having children in our garden showing them how to look after hedgehogs weighing cleaning and feeding them etc.
Another Red Letter Day for me was when NWT phoned me and said BBC’s Country File wanted me to feature in a Spring Special they were televising about Emma Turner. I thought it was a wind up! I phoned the film director and was asked if I would be free to be filmed. They wanted a female, amateur photographer who had had photos published to compare with Emma a century on. Really strange I was now being compared to her! James Parry, who was writing a book about her (see below) John Blackburn, reserve manager at Hickling and myself all went out on the boat with the BBC to what is called Emma Turner Island.
This was all filmed. When we got back on shore, I was taken with the crew to be interviewed by John Craven. What a privilege! This episode went live on Country File on Sunday May 20th 2018. I wondered what Emma Turner would have thought? I was in camouflaged clothing, had a hide to look out of and a big lens on my digital camera which takes full colour images. Unlike Emma, I could look at what I’d photographed straight away and delete and try again. She had to make do with old equipment and laying in the cold, damp, smelly reeds.
I was so pleased that they used my photographs and video clips in the programme. The photo of a Bitten was in the same pose as Emma Turner’s, but mine was in colour her’s was black and white. The videos used were of a Reed Bunting swaying on a reed and a Bittern walking though the reedbed. Mine wasn’t booming though; the BBC obviously added sound effects.
What would you consider to be your deepest regret?
Not having the know how or the opportunity to do what I do now at a younger age.
What advice you would give to a budding naturalist?
Get out and about and explore. Join clubs and ask questions. When you find something that interests you, take photos or draw pictures then Google it and find out as much as you can about your subject and build up your own reference library. Show and tell at school and encourage others to take an interest in your hobby. Maybe encourage your school or teacher to have a Forest School, Pond or Nature table.
What advice would you give your 16-year-old self?
Have the confidence to believe in myself and do what makes me happy. Not thinking that others know more than me and therefore they are right not me.
If you could be anywhere in the world at this moment where would it be and why?
Where would I be if I could be anywhere in the world is a tough question. I would love to go back to India. The people the food and the wildlife are all wonderful. The children seemed so happy although they didn’t appear to have much and they work hard. But as far as I am concerned there’s nowhere like home. I am Norfolk born and bred. I love living in our county and am proud of it and am passionate about sharing what we have here to anyone who shows an interest or is prepared to listen. We have beautiful beaches, an abundance of wildlife, the Norfolk Broads, lots of history and many wonderful historical buildings. I would always choose to be in Norfolk,
What is your favourite or most admired animal and why?
My favourite animal if I could only choose one would have to be a Barn Owl. I could stand and watch them all day long and never get bored. Their big brown, soft eyes are unusual compared with other birds of prey. They vary so much in colour with the different shades of browns and creamy whites in the plumage which helps them look very individual.
What are your hobbies/interests outside of wildlife?
I have several hobbies which makes me a bit of a hoarder. One day everything I’ve saved will come in handy. I like any type of craft work and anything artistic. I make cards using various techniques, i.e. Pergamano, Iris Folding, Glass Painting, Tea Bag folding, Découpage and using my photos.
What is your favourite musical artist/work?
My favourite musical is Mary Poppins. Sad I know, but it makes me laugh and you can watch it over and over again with the grandchildren and I still enjoy it.
As for artists. Well, after visiting the Sistine Chapel and seeing the ceiling paintings by Michelangelo it was mind-blowingly beautiful. However, I appreciate varied art styles and techniques, Cubism, Pop Art, Impressionism, Surrealism and Art Nouveau. Art and painting, I believe, is very much in the eye of the beholder. It is a very powerful visual aid that can be good or bad. I once went to a Bridget Riley exhibition and had to leave, it made me feel as though the room was moving. I couldn’t stand still. Very clever, although not for me. Another time whilst abroad I wondered into a Salvador Dali art display, I’m not so keen on Surrealism but loved his sculptural work, which later I taught to my art students. We had a lot of fun cutting out watch face pictures and going to a car boot sale to buy old watches to break up to make our own sculpture in Dali style. You can always be open minded and learn new skills and reproduce something you would never have thought of doing. My favourite is Vincent Van Gogh. I studied him for my A level art. Genius or Madness? I often wonder how he would be described today, now we know far more about mental health. Finally, I love the old Norwich School painters. John Sell Cotman, John Crome and Stannard, possibly because their subjects were often local and rural scenes of Norwich and Norfolk,
Top 5 movies of all time and briefly why?
Movies for me are probably the classics. Pretty Woman, Dirty Dancing, Ghost, Bridget Jones and The Full Monty. Sad I know, but they make me laugh and chill out.
Top 5 books and why?
Anything by Sir David Attenborough as he is my hero! Also a lady called Emma Turner who is becoming more well known these days. Several photos related to her have been discovered and a new book about her has just been printed for the Norfolk and Norwich Naturalist Society. A great book written by my friend James Parry and Jeremy Greenwood. Her most celebrated book, Broadland Birds, was published in 1924. She was a female photographer who took the first photo of a Bittern, in 1911 at Hickling. This proved they were here in the UK after being thought to be extinct. Most of my books are either on art, birds or wildlife. I have read loads of books in the past especially when studying, but I like factual books these days that I can dip in and out of to find out more about a particular species.
Who or what are your heroes/heroines/greatest Inspirations?
As I have said Sir David Attenborough is my hero, and even as a child I loved watching his programs, which back then if I remember were in black and white!
I was so excited when I was invited by Norfolk Wildlife Trust to attend their 90th Birthday celebration where Sir David was the guest of honour to celebrate the newly acquired land at Cley. It was a truly wonderful day. To sit just behind him watching his silver hair blowing in the gentle breeze on a sunny afternoon was amazing. A red letter day for me I shall never forget. I felt so privileged. I don’t think NWT really realised just how much it meant to me.
My other hero is the author I mentioned earlier, Emma Louisa Turner (1867 -1940 ) She was a pioneering bird photographer in what was, back then, very much a man’s world. She was self taught and spent a lot of time here in Norfolk, at Hickling, photographing birds in the reedbed. Her books are so interesting and inspirational, I have learnt so much from her.
I try to model myself doing what she did. For example, listening and watching the behaviour of the birds, anticipating by their behaviour what they would do next or how to spot which bird is moving around by the way the reeds move! However, unlike Emma I have not laid down in the reedbed and been covered by reeds and rotten vegetation to be hidden and camouflaged! Although I have lain and crawled along in the reedbed to take photos of cranes in the past.
What makes you happy?
Being with my family makes me happy. I love having time with the grandchildren and doing things with them. We paint and draw. We go walking with the dogs. We pick Elderflowers and make cordial, which we drink all year round. We bake and just enjoy being together. My grandson used to go out a lot with me seeing wildlife when he was younger, he is just coming to the end of his degree so he has been busy studying. He often phones me to say he has seen a red kite or a fox when he has been out and about. The seed has been sown and am sure he will get back into it again sometime.
What makes you sad?
When I am out and hear bad language in the streets. Sitting on the bus and every one is on their mobile phones. When you give someone something and they don’t say Thank You. I just think manners today are not so good. Maybe I’m just a grumpy old woman!
Name 3 things on your ‘bucket list’
I haven’t got a bucket list.
What would you most like to accomplish and/or be remember
I have encouraged lots of people of all ages to get out with nature and see all the wildlife around us here in Norfolk. It’s my passion and I love being out with nature. I could stand and watch a barn owl for hours.
However I couldn’t stand for a long time watching a football match. We all have to respect each other and do what makes us happy.
Thank you Liz, that was brilliant, you really do fit the category of people who have made a difference. I look forward to seeing more of your wonderful photographs and seeing lots of great wildlife with you in the years to come. For more profiles click here.
I can honestly say Liz is one in a million. We have been close friends for many many years and I admire her endless compassion, kindness and sheer will to make the world a happier place filled with love and laughter. She has achieved this in abundance.
She is one of life’s greatest carers of wildlife.
Her passion, enthusiasm and dedication to nature and wildlife in Norfolk and beyond is second to none.
She is always my encyclopaedia of knowledge for any countryside topic. What a teacher!
To me her wildlife photography surpasses the very best. Her attention to detail and professional eye to capture the perfect shot are truly amazing.
I am so very fortunate to have benefitted from your valued friendship Liz for so long. You have inspired me to appreciate a love of nature and notice the beauty all around us.
Keep caring for our wildlife and taking those magnificent pics that are so wonderful to see and enjoy. You have no idea what a special lady you are.
I have only known Liz for a short time, we have a caravans on the same site. I love looking at all the birds and wildlife although not very knowlegable, but love talking with Liz as she tells me all the things to look out for and places to visit in our second home in beautiful Norfolk. A true ambassador for this gorgeous county.
Loved reading this! Elizabeth is my nan and I am very proud of all she has achieved. She has such enthusiasm for wildlife and the world around her, it is very inspirational.
Love to you nan!
Elysha x
Elysha, remember when I took you with my camera to the Ted Ellis Trust. You took some great pictures. Now you are at Easton College studying and photographing annimals. Thank you for commenting. So proud of you. I hope you keep taking lovely photos. Nan x
We are long time members of the NWT. We met Liz at Hickling. Her enthusiam for the reserve is boundless and she helped us to see what a truly remarkable place it is, when you know when and where to look. We now get much more out of our visits, and we are looking forward the time when we can once again be free to roam!
During the lockdown we have reconnected with our local area. Liz was kind enough to help us identify a bird through her network of friends, unfortunatedly a domestic escape rather than a Serin, you can’t win them all! Still very excited today as we had our first ever garden Cuckcoo calling and landing our tree.
Thanks Heather, I’ll bring this to Liz’s attention, I’m sure she will be pleased. A garden cuckoo is quite something, I haven’t been able to go out and see one yet and have resigned myself to missing them altogether this year. Keep looking at the web site because there will be other profiles of people you may know.
Thank you Heather for your kind comment. Hickling is a great reserve. I am really missing it during this lockdown. Not seeing and hearing the Bitterns. Mostly though the Cuckoo. It is always a good place to see them, especially as we only have them here for a few weeks a year.
Stay safe and maybe meet you there again one day.
Liz.
Liz is one amazing Lady, this may sound strange as I have never met her! But with Flickr, and all the modern forms of communication, she has helped me a lot, she just oozes enthusiasm and knowledge. If I could model myself on anybody it would be her.
The success she has, is gifted and not sort after, if only more people where like her, the world would be a far better place. Am giving you another challenge dear Liz, we need your knowledge in print ! and I would love to purchase a copy, signed of course !
Well done in all you do Liz
Tomx
Hi Tom, thanks for your comment, I’ll make sure Liz sees it.
Thank you Tom for looking at my Profile and leaving a very kind comment. As you probably know via Flickr. I just love wildlife in all forms and am fortunate enough to live in a beautiful part of the country which has so much. Maybe one of these days our paths will cross and we will meet. I feel I know you like a Pen Friend , if they still exist today!! Take care and stay safe,
Liz
If you’ve not seen any of Liz’s photos I urge you to follow her on Facebook. It’s always good to see a female making inroads into an area that was previously mainly dominated by males – not withstanding Emma Turner of course. Good luck Liz and power to your shutter!
Hi Carl, thanks for your comment. I’ll make sure Liz sees it.
Thanks for you comment Carl. Have you read the new book about Emma Turner yet? Very good, shows a window into her personal life as well as her photography,
Liz
In a world of photography so dominated by men, Liz’s work inspires us all, and she deserves all the recognition she can get. The children who Liz has raised and helped educate will no doubt always remember her fondly, and will have been made more aware of the natural world she shows us. I was pleased to see the name Elizabeth Dack acknowledged in “Emma Turner – a life looking at birds”, published by the NNNS last year.
Thanks Jim, I’ll pass your comment on to Liz.
Thank you for your kind comment Jim. Being the oldest of five children, I feel I have been an educator all of my life. That has been a bonus though as I feel have been blessed to have always been able to engage with young people. I have met a few of the children I taught years ago, they as adults have come to see me whilst working at various NWT events with their families often tell me how I had inspired them. I take this as one of the biggest compliments I have received.
Stay safe
Liz
I really enjoy seeing Elizabeth’s fantastic photographs and descriptions on Facebook, I find her posts educational, they have helped me answer a few questions on University Challenge. The photographs inspire me to spot the birds on my walks. Keep the photos coming they brighten my day.
Hi Lindsay, thank you for this. I’ll make sure Liz sees your comment.
Dear Lindsay, thank you for you kind comments. I remember you telling me about the University Challenge question. I think it was something to do with a Bittern if I remember correctly.
As for you enjoy seeing my photos?? I know I have board you often when I have been excited about a special species and taken about 200 photos of it !!! You are always kind though and still continue to support me. and I love you for it.
Elizabeth Your big Sister.
It’s always lovely to see your amazing photos Liz, especially the barn owls. Your curiosity and knowledge of the wildlife all around us is an inspiration.
Thank you for your kind comment Catherine.
Stay safe Liz
I’ve been following this photographer for many years now, and have a few pictures in my own collection. Her photos are inspirational and capture the essence of Norfolk and its wide variety of natural beauty, the photos themselves are a pleasure to behold with some amazing “action shots” and some memorable moments of wildlife in their natural surroundings. In my opinion you would have to go along way to find such an individual who has a passion for conservation and nature, who is also willing to go that little bit further to capture the essence of Norfolk in such amazing detail.
Thank you for your comment Scott, I’ll bring to Liz’s attention and make sure she sees it.
Thank you for your kind comments Scott, I know you have followed me for years and appreciate my special moments when I capture that rare shot. I am sure there will be more special photos and moments I will have to share with you in the future .
All the best Liz
Inspiring as always Liz , in your lovely, calm quiet way you happily guide and help anyone, unselfishly sharing your knowledge and your amazing photos . I’m proud to know you.
Thanks Jeanette, I’ll make sure Liz sees your comment.
Jeanette, thanks for leaving a lovely comment. I valued this a lot as you know me so well. We worked together at school for 12 years and have remained the best of friends. Every time you are on school holidays, I drag you out with me in all weathers. All around the country. Sometimes getting lost, freezing cold, soaking wet and still you support me because you know I am doing something I love. You are truly a Great Friend.
Liz