Making his mark

Most grandparents brag about their grandchildren, but Roseburg’s John Wheland has bona fide boasting rights.

The proof is in his grandson’s pictures.

An avid photographer, Wheland has combed the Oregon countryside for years searching for Mother Nature’s best features — a bull elk bugling in the morning fog or a sunset blanketing a snow-capped mountain range.

Dozens of such photographs line his walls at his shop on Southeast Stephens Street, but a select few were captured by a much younger shutterbug.

Wheland’s accomplice in shooting nature’s beauty is 7-year-old Cade Meisner, who is not only his grandson, but also his protégé.

“I saw my papa do it and I just wanted to see a bunch of big bucks and stuff,” said the second-grader during a recent interview. “I’ve been doing it since I was least 4 years old.”

On the weekends, Cade and Wheland pack a couple of cameras and head into the wilderness of Eastern Oregon. They eat peanut butter sandwiches, roast marshmallows around the campfire and follow fresh tracks, hoping to catch a glimpse of a wild animal.

Last year, when Cade was 6, he and Wheland came across a herd of elk grazing in a golden field, just below a hillside.

Cade took a series of photos and his grandfather submitted them to Trophy Hunter Magazine. They were published in this month’s issue.

Cade took the magazine to show and tell at Melrose Elementary School.

“When I brought the magazine to school, (my friends) said ‘Cool, Cade’s in a magazine,’” the young photographer said.

His thoughts on his 15 minutes of fame: “Awesome.”

When Cade was about 4 years old, he started accompanying Wheland on his Oregon safaris. By the time Cade was 5, he was taking his own photographs.

“He holds the camera just naturally right,” said Wheland. “That's just how he picked it up.”

Some of Cade’s more impressive photos include a bald eagle screaming from its perch on a tree branch, a silhouetted elk majestically paired with the setting sun and a pesky raccoon peeking out of a hole in a tree stump after it raided the photographers’ campsite.

“There’s just not a lot of 7-year-olds that have a knack for this,” said Wheland, who is enjoying Cade’s fresh and youthful perspective. “He’s got a good eye. He takes pictures I would never think to take.”

Cade’s approach to photography is simple, but effective.

“You can get really good pictures of horses because they won’t run away,” Cade said as he demonstrated how he holds his Canon Rebel XTI.

He talked about the settings he uses on a sunny day compared to a cloudy day, and said he takes about three shots of each subject.

His advice for other aspiring photographers is to take pictures of elk while the animals are bugling, snap pictures of horses when the equines’ heads are up (not when they’re grazing) and use a tripod to ensure a steady shot.

“Also, you want to have (the camera) in your truck in case you come up on an animal,” Cade said.

Traipsing across Oregon has proved to be more interesting with a 7-year-old in tow, Wheland said. Whether the two are chasing a pest away from the campsite, or being chased (they’ve had one close call with a bear), there is seldom a dull moment.

Cade said he would like to take photography classes when he’s older and he wouldn’t mind a trip to Africa someday.

Despite praise from his family and a spread in a magazine, the youngster hasn’t let a little bit of success go to his head. His version of a handshake is a hug, and he still gets into trouble, which he proved by tossing a plastic rat against the wall during a chat with a reporter.

“At 7, he's not thinking about his future,” said Wheland. “He’s having fun, because that’s what a 7-year-old does.”



• You can reach reporter Cara Pallone at 957-4208 or by e-mail at cpallone@nrtoday.com.