How to herp??

[snakekid6996]

I live in a neighborhood in Indiana. I know there must be at least a few snakes there, because we are surrounded by corn fields with a good supply of mice and our neighborhood has very tiny patches of wood. I'd love to be able to find a snake or two in the summer while I'm not in school to photograph, but I've never seen a snake here and I don't know how to go about finding one. We have a pond with some small woods by it which might be a good place to look. Also at the end of my street there is a dead end with a small patch of woods and a field right behind it. Does anyone have any tips?? I've tried looking under logs, branches, etc. But never had any luck. May e there are just no snakes around my house??