Jacob Belinda gave himself five years to turn hunting into a career. In episode 76 of A Hunter’s Legacy, the Pennsylvania hunter joins Mitchell Fox at the five-year mark to talk about building an outdoor media business, growing up in a taxidermy shop, and following deer tracks until the pieces finally fit.
The work behind the camera gets as much attention as the hunts in front of it. Belinda describes producing his own content, doing work for outdoor brands, and taking contract camera jobs. Making a living in hunting means finding clients, learning where to spend money, and showing up when the work needs doing.
A Childhood in His Dad’s Taxidermy Shop
Belinda grew up around State College in the mountains of central Pennsylvania. His dad’s taxidermy shop put hunting stories and animals in front of him long before he could understand all the details. Outside the shop, the family hunted, fished, and spent time outdoors throughout the year.
Some of his earliest memories are of sitting beside his dad during deer season. Those hunts often happened close to home or on nearby game lands, with his dad fitting time outside around customers and work. It was an ordinary part of family life that eventually became the foundation of Belinda’s own career.
He still has his first deer, a spike buck. He remembers hunting beside a hemlock near a creek behind the house, seeing what he initially thought was a doe, and discovering the small antlers afterward. The deer ended up in the creek, leaving a drag home that felt much longer to a young hunter than the distance suggested.
The Five-Year Gamble Behind a Hunting Career
Before working in outdoor media full time, Belinda played professional baseball. Changing careers brought a different set of demands. He built his business on his own, learning through trial and error rather than following a partner’s established plan.
He describes lean Christmas seasons and times when there was little money left in the bank. The conversation makes room for the decisions behind that pressure: putting resources back into the business, figuring out which expenses help, and continuing to work when the results take time.
His five-year plan gave the effort a timeframe. At the time of recording, he was in year five. He had reached the point of making hunting-related media his work, but his account stays grounded in the client projects and camera assignments that help support it. The finished video is only one part of the job.
Pennsylvania Taught Him to Slow Down
Belinda’s dad taught him to track and still-hunt as well as sit and wait. As a young hunter, Belinda wanted to move quickly. His dad paid closer attention to what the woods and the animals were doing. Learning to slow down took practice.
He also remembers bringing frustration from sports into the woods. A bad attitude could lead to careless movement and mistakes. Over time, he learned to settle down and pay attention to the hunt in front of him.
That approach matters in the Pennsylvania mountain country he enjoys hunting. Large stretches of timber give him fewer opportunities to watch deer from roads or distant vantage points. He values getting on the ground and learning how food, water, and terrain shape a deer’s movements.
The New York Snow Track That Came Together
When Fox asks about a favorite whitetail hunt, Belinda returns to a long day tracking in New York snow. An early track led him to a buck he decided to pass. Along the way, he noticed an older, frozen track near a fresher one across a saddle.
That detail stayed with him. Late in the day, after spending hours on other ground, he returned to investigate. Time and daylight were running short, and the track took him farther into public land.
He worked forward while checking the woods ahead with binoculars. Eventually, he spotted a gray-faced buck feeding across a ravine. The deer was unaware of him, giving Belinda the opportunity he had worked toward throughout the day.
The long trip out was part of the memory too. What stands out in his telling is solving the puzzle: remembering an earlier clue, choosing to return, and finally finding a deer going about its day. He also makes clear that following a track often ends without that payoff.
Good Glass and a Story Worth Telling
Asked about useful gear, Belinda points to good binoculars. Seeing a deer before it sees him fits the patient style of hunting he describes throughout the episode. Natural cover, terrain, and careful observation all have a place alongside the equipment.
His story connects a childhood beside his dad with the demands of building a business around the outdoors. There are satisfying hunts along the way, but also long days, uncertain decisions, and work nobody sees in the finished upload.
Listen to episode 76 with Jacob Belinda or watch the full conversation here.
