FWS Behind the Lens: Brett Billings
Brett Billings is a senior video producer with the U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service, which conserves, protects and restores America’s wildlife and habitats. In his work he has snowmobiled the frozen tundra of Alaska, hiked the Montana badlands and floated through Florida swamps to obtain the perfect shot. His home base is the National Conservation Training Center in Shepherdstown, West Virginia.
“The saying goes, 90% of success is just showing up. And that means being there an hour before sunrise for photographers.”
Prior to joining the Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS), he managed America’s oldest outdoors program, “Kentucky Afield” where he worked for ten years. While there Brett covered wildlife success stories such as the reintroduction of Elk into the Appalachian Mountains, releasing peregrine falcons back into their historic range, and restoring native tallgrass prairies for birds. Brett is a former Army broadcast journalist (1988–1993), having served in Alaska, Portugal and Germany.
Brett’s favorite aspect of his job is wildlife videography. With a keen interest in critters ranging from tiny aquatic insects to the largest mammals, he blends a love of the outdoors with an artist’s eye to capture the beauty of our nation’s wildlife. His diverse background in drama, choral music, 35mm photography, hunting, fishing and writing all inform his finished productions. Brett’s video work has won several state and national awards. A lifelong public servant, Brett’s communications experience ranges from writing for newspapers and magazines to hosting radio news programs, television reporting in Europe and interviewing celebrities.
While working with the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife, Brett created a unique Bachelor’s of Individualized Studies program at Eastern Kentucky University (EKU). He graduated in 1997 with the first-ever “Environmental Broadcast Journalism” degree. Brett finished his Master’s degree in biology at EKU in 2004 with a thesis on aquatic bugs of the Cumberland River.
The FWS National Digital Library aims to highlight different people in the field who have contributed imagery that reflects the full expression of the mission of the Service. To view a collection of Brett Billings’ images in the FWS National Digital Library click here. Visit us at: images.fws.gov. Brought to you by the USFWS Conservation Library. #FWSBehindTheLens
