Today, we have a special interview with Bowhunting.Com Junior Editor, Cody Altizer. He’s an outdoor freak who lives for bowhunting whitetails. Cody is an up-and-comer in the deer hunting community, and has a great appreciation and perspective when it comes to capturing the outdoors with camera equipment.
Personal
OF – You’re from Virginia. How was your hunting situation out there?
Cody Altizer – I am fortunate enough to have 260 acres that I am able to hunt whenever I feel like. That’s a luxury that not many people enjoy so I am very thankful. Bowhunting for whitetails in Virginia is a lot like bowhunting anywhere in the country. You have to put your time in, work hard and get lucky!
OF – How did you get started with Bowhunting.Com?
Cody Altizer – The typical American Dream story! I used to write for a small Virginia based hunting website and maintained my own blog a few years back. I would share my articles and blog posts in the Bowhunting.com forums looking for feedback and constructive criticism on how to improve my writing. Well, one day I got a message from Hunting Network Senior Editor Mike Willand, gauging my interest level for a new website Todd Graf was working on, Bowhunting.com. I jumped at the opportunity, drove to Chicago last summer for the Get Together and before I knew it, was hard at working at the Bowhunting.com Office!
OF – I hear you recently moved down South. Was that because Justin Zarr kept making you feel uncomfortable with the constant winking? Or was it for more for media schooling?
Cody Altizer – Justin does a lot of things, and I learned more from him during my time up there than he knows, but you will never catch him winking at other guys! But my move down South was based solely on two reasons, live with my brother for one final year before he gets married, and get my Business- Marketing degree. So far it’s working out great! Although, the deer in North Carolina are a lot smaller than Illinois!
OF – With the recent move, how has it changed your relationship and duties with Bowhunting.Com?
Cody Altizer – Before I moved back home from Chicago I was bumped up to the Junior Editor of Bowhunting.com, so I have been given more responsibility and duties that I can do from home. I miss it like crazy up there though! I learned so much from Todd and Justin about hunting, business, how to carry myself and how to be successful that I contemplate a move back up there all the time. I am more than excited about what my future with Todd, Justin and Bowhunting.com!
OF – Because I facebook stalked you like a 14 year old girl, I can see that you’re not a stranger to the basketball gym. Tell us a little bit about that! When’d you play? Where? Favorite team? College hoops fan?
Cody Altizer – Basketball is just as big a part of my life as bowhunting, almost. My dad and brother taught me the game and I played it at a very high level all the way through high school until the passion that is bowhunting for whitetails completely engulfed me. My claim to fame in basketball is that I could (and still can, on a good day) do a 360 degree dunk- even though I am just 6 feet tall! Pursuing a career in the hunting industry has proven to be the right decision, but I miss competing and the time away from the court.
OF – Favorite Flick?
Cody Altizer – The Dark Knight – One of film’s greatest tragedies is Heath Ledger’s death.
OF – Do you have a lady friend?
Cody Altizer – No lady friend for me right now, they are too much trouble and too expensive at my age! I will tell you what though, Willie, when you find an attractive young woman that enjoys bowhunting, photography and video like I do, feel free to give her my contact info!
Deer Hunting
OF – How’s your deer season looking this upcoming Fall?
Cody Altizer – As of right now, it looks fantastic! My food plots in Virginia are doing extraordinarily well, and I feel like they will pay off big time for me this fall. The key to successfully bowhunting my property in Virginia is having a consistent food source throughout the fall, and for the first time ever, I think that will be the case this season. My goal is to shoot a 3 year old buck before November 1st this year in Virginia, so I can’t wait until the season opens! Other than that, I am going to be making a return trip to Illinois this fall and hunt and film for a week or so with Justin and Mike; I am hoping to put down another Illinois buck and have a lot of doing it on that trip!
OF – Where did you hunt this past Fall, being new to the Land of Lincoln?
Cody Altizer – I was fortunate enough to hunt three different locations this past fall in Illinois. I hunted in McHenry and Boone Counties outside of Chicago, and harvested a mature doe in McHenry County opening weekend on film. But my favorite spot was hunting Justin’s lease in Pike and Brown Counties. I shot my first buck with a bow on the Pike County side of his lease Halloween Weekend while filming myself! I’ll never forget that trip! See Cody’s entire hunt on film, here.
OF – Do you hunt other game too, or are you just a whitetail junkie?
Cody Altizer – I live and breathe for whitetails! Every Spring I say I am going to get into turkey hunting, and every Spring I spend more and more time working food plots and doing other habit management projects to help my whitetail hunting in the fall. Sooner or later, I honestly believe I will get bit by the turkey hunting bug, but it’s all whitetails for me right now.
OF – What’s your favorite piece of hunting gear?
Cody Altizer – I would be lying if I told you I had a SINGLE favorite piece of hunting gear, because there are just too many products I rely on and trust. That being said, I feel like my Mathews Z7 Xtreme equipped with an NAP Apache Arrow Rest and broadhead and a Lone Wolf Assault and Lone Wolf Climbing Sticks give me the best chance to be successful in the field. Lone Wolf and NAP simply make products that make hunters more efficient and stealthy in the woods, and the new Z7 family of bows from Mathews is incredible. You can’t go wrong with equipment.
Photography / Video
OF – Canon or Sony?
Cody Altizer – Canon for stills, Sony for video.
OF – What’s your favorite picture you’ve taken?
Cody Altizer – I have a handful of images that I am very proud of, but if I had to narrow it down to just one capture, it would be of a shot I got several years ago of some daffodils facing a wooden cross. It’s a unique shot because when the sun sets, it sets behind the cross and the flowers face the cross at sunset. I call the image “Even Nature Follows Christ.”
OF – What’s your current video and photo setup?
Cody Altizer – For photos, I shoot with a Canon 7D and 24-105mm f/4 L series Wide Angle lens- love that thing! I actually use the 7D for the majority of my filming now as well, but when filming hunts I use a Canon HF S20 HD Camcorder with Azden shotgun mic and Audio-Techica wireless mics mounted to the Muddy Outdoor Tree Arm.
OF – How long have you been into photography and video?
Cody Altizer – I’ve loved photography and video ever since I can remember. I just enjoy sharing with others the world how I see it. The world looks different to all of us, and if I can share with others what I see every day and how I see it, then maybe I can impact others on a very unique level that’s possible only through photo and film.
Thanks so much Cody for taking the time to do this interview, and share with us a glimpse of what you’re all about. We look forward to catching up with you during the hunting season, best of luck!
