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Animal Photography

One of the greatest things about animal photography is the adventure of it. Whatever animal you are photographing you'll be learning about its behaviour, getting to know where it can be found, travelling to it, photographing it and then continuing to learn about it as you go through your photographs. At the end of a trip you'll know the animal quite intimately.

For example I recently went on a wildlife photography trip to photograph a gray seal colony while they were ashore to give berth. I was fascinated to discover how interested they were in me. It made me wonder who was watching who!

Whether you're a beginner, a serious amateur or a professional wildlife photographer you'll pick up some excellent tips for wildlife photography on these pages.

The Best Time For Animal Photography

The best time for photographing animals is dictated by the light. Without a doubt it is the hours immediately after sunrise and immediately before sunset. During these times the light is truly beautiful and the wildlife is at its best. At this time of the morning the light is golden, in the late afternoon it is a wonderful golden orange. They're not called the golden hours for nothing!

Another good time for beautiful light is immediately after a thunder storm.

If you don't take advantage of these times your exposures will be harsh and contrasty. Photographing in wonderful light is one of the keys to achieving success with wildlife photography. Five minutes with an animal in good light is all you need to produce stunning pictures.

The worst possible time is between 11 A.M and 1 P.M

Know Your Subject

Knowing as much as you possibly can about the animal you are photographing will allow you to get much more exciting and interesting images. Being able to predict their next move will give your animal photography an edge.

For every animal that I photograph I usually study its life and behaviour. My article on the Photographic Life of a Gray Seal shows an example of this. An excellent resource for finding out more about an animal is the species finder on the World Wildlife Fund website.

Color

As wildlife photographers we strive to find ways of making our photographs convey their intended emotions. We can't do much about the color of the animal but we can use color in its habitat to good effect. My article on color in photography explains this in detail.

I have tried to cover everything about photographing wildlife by explaining it through the following case studies of my favourite subjects. Enjoy!

Deer Photography is difficult because they're always looking for signs of danger - unusual smells, shapes or noises. The slightest hint of danger and they're off at a gallop in the opposite direction.

Horse Photography covers anything from a formal photograph of a horse in a stable to more romantic shots of white horses galloping through water.

Polar Bear Photography - there aren't many places where polar bear photography can be done safely. They are solitary animals who are both fearless and curious. Male Polar bears can be up to 10ft long and weigh 1500 pounds.

Seal Photography is a wildlife experience that you'll never forget. If you can find a seal colony and observe them you'll find them intelligent animals who are as curious of you as you are of them.

Dolphin Photography The wonderful thing about dolphin photography is that the dolphins can be extremely sociable, and enjoy interacting with people, as long as you let them do so on their own terms. They are widely considered to be considered to be among the most intelligent of animals.

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