Elevate your portraits of birds with patience in your approach, and gain a more intimate understanding of their behavioral patterns.
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The beach is an amazing place to take photographs, and especially for photographing shorebirds. No matter the time of day, the beautiful and ever-changing scene is full of life, energy and motion. For those of us who have fallen in love with the winged beings who live the greater portion of their lives along the shore, it is easy to understand why the allure of capturing wings in motion, multitudes of bodies dressed in beautifully unique shapes, colors and sizes is such a strong call, set against the backdrop of dramatic skies and seascapes.
So how does one go about creating and capturing strong shore and wading bird portraits, beyond the rote headshot? In the following, I hope to share with you not the technical details of what camera settings you should be using but, rather, an ethos on how to approach your environment, become a part of it, immerse yourself into the experience of your scene—translating and transplanting that very experience into passionate, compelling images that resonate deeply with your viewers.
Go Slow When Photographing Shorebirds
Approaching any creature with wings is always an unknown—will they spook and fly off immediately or will they let you get closer? Photographing shorebirds is no different. Many shorebird and wader species tend to be flighty, and, depending on your location, may or may not be comfortable with human presence. I have found that location greatly determines the tolerance of local residents. For instance, it is far easier to approach shorebirds in places such as the beaches of Florida and New York, where they are quite conditioned to human activity, than in less-populated places such as Maine or Nova Scotia. Bearing this in mind, I have found a few methods of approaching your soon-to-be subjects helpful.
Spend a few moments observing before approaching. Hang back a bit and take notice of the activity in which your subject is currently engaged. Are they foraging, hunting or preening? If your subject is active, watch how they are going about it—every bird has unique behavioral patterns that they will repeat, based on their current task at hand. By watching, you will be able to see and understand their pattern, identifying opportunities to approach that will be least disruptive to your subject as well as provide you with a greater understanding of moments to look for when you are behind your camera.
Take the long, slow way around. A head-on, direct-approach path, more often than not, will put your subject on alert. Birds have exceptional vision and a radar-like sense that allows them to evaluate whether oncoming beings are a danger to them or not. Taking a slow, wide arc or an indirect path to put yourself into position gives both you and your subject time to get used to the presence of one another, signaling to your subject that you are not a danger to them.
Oftentimes as I approach, I will stop every 10 feet or so, slowly drop to my knees and fire a few shots of my subject that I want to get closer to. If my subject looks distressed or changes what they are doing, I will stay where I am and give my subject time to get used to me and the sound of my shutter. As they get more comfortable, I gently make my way to where I want to position myself, repeating the process of stopping, dropping to my knees and shooting every 10 feet or so until I am about 90 percent of the way there. If my subject hasn’t flushed by this time, I will carefully get prone and very methodically inch my way to my final shooting position.
This works for me about 70 percent of the time. If I do happen to flush my subject, I will casually (and, again, slowly) approach the area that I had wanted to be originally, assume my shooting position, and wait for the birds to get used to me being there. It usually takes a flushed bird about 20 minutes or so to come back to where they were. I will lay low and be very still, as it helps to not scare them off once they come back.
Don’t Be Afraid To Get Low, Sandy Or Wet
When it comes to photographing shorebirds—or birds of any kind—putting yourself in a position where you can shoot at eye level with your subject is paramount to being able to draw your viewer into your photograph. While this is much easier to do in places where you don’t have to combat the difficult combination of salt, sand, wind and water, the extra effort to get down to ground level in these not-always-optimal conditions will pay off in spades for your final result. It’s not just about being eye-level though; shooting low has other impactful benefits.
Shooting low helps you to be less threatening to your subject. As we discussed previously, being able to capture next-level portraits means being able to approach and be close to your subjects. Shooting from a prone position reduces your towering stature down to a much-less threatening 12 inches-or-less tall (albeit very long) shore creature.
Shooting low creates intimacy. Shooting from the ground creates an intimate perspective, allowing you the opportunity to capture subtle behaviors not captured when shooting from above, providing a unique point of view within your frame.
Shooting low allows you to include, or exclude, elements that can alter the tone and feel of your image. Due to the camera position and the angle of the sensor in relationship to your subject, shooting from the ground gives you a greater berth to utilize foreground and background elements in a way that you simply can’t if you are shooting at 10 inches or higher above the ground.
Shooting low enables you to harness light in ways that a higher perspective won’t allow. When shooting low on the shore, water and sand will reflect light back onto your subjects, providing beautiful, under-lit images that you are only able leverage if you are in a low position to take advantage of the ground-up light bounce.
Resist The Urge To Chase Shots
Photographing shorebirds and waders was such a learning curve for me. It was so radically different than photographing other bird species. I learned early on that while there seems to be an overabundance of activity engulfing you when you are at shore’s edge, it is best to remain in situ. You have worked so hard to get to this spot, gain acceptance from your subject and get yourself into a position that will guarantee you produce outstanding images; to get up and start the process all over again takes a fair amount of time, and often by the time you get there, the action will be over, and you will have disrupted your former subject.
I have found that by staying in my original spot and letting the birds acclimate to me, they will soon go about their normal, everyday business, and that is when I am able to capture the best images of my time with them. Granted, this most often takes up to an hour to occur but is well worth the time in terms of the quality and context of the images I am able to capture.
Embrace Your Subject’s Behavior
To go beyond the traditional portrait-style image, learning what to look for in the species you are photographing prior to arriving on scene will give you a greater ability to predict the decisive moments you will want to capture. As you research prior to getting to your destination, take into consideration the time of year. Is it breeding season? Spring or fall migration? Also consider the time of day to understand what “mode” your subjects will be in, based on your location.
When researching, look for online videos of your intended subject. Watching how they move ahead of time helps me to adapt very quickly when they are in front of my lens. The Cornell Lab of Ornithology’s channel on YouTube is an incredible reference for just about any bird species.
Whenever on the shore, I map my time in front of the computer back to the scene in front of me, always watching for interesting, repetitive behavior that allows me to identify the pattern of my subject’s particular activity, such as preening, foraging, hunting or feeding. Each of these activities are repeated frequently over a long period of time, and most often over the same range, allowing for multiple attempts at composition and motion capture.
I find that the more I shoot a behavior, the stronger my hand-eye coordination and reflexes become at recognizing the behavioral signals that happen seconds before the moment I want to portray. Over time and with awareness of your subject’s behavioral patterns, you will be able to anticipate specific movements, focusing ahead of that preemptive hunting strike or wing flap, and thereby greatly increasing the number of dynamic moments you are able to capture.
Embrace Your Environmental Elements
How lucky are we that the shore provides such a plethora of background and foreground opportunities? From leading lines in ocean waves, to abstract patterns formed by sea foam, to softly colored wet sand at first light, there are no limits to how we can utilize the shore’s environmental elements to create captivating images. A few details to consider including in your compositions:
The surf. The shore’s edge provides a dynamic and transformative property to images. Rolling waves create abstract background patterns when your subject is in front of them and shot with shallow depth of field. When shooting perpendicular to the water’s edge, gently receding waves provide leading lines to and from your subject. At first light, last light, golden hour and blue hour, the wet sand saturated with the last of the tide mirrors the sky, creating intense pink, purple and blue hues you aren’t able to capture at other hours of the day. Pair the incredible reflectivity of the water with low-angle shooting, and you have a painterly like backdrop against which to frame up your subjects.
The sand. Though the sand is everywhere, utilizing its unique properties can provide a fresh perspective with new compositions. Leveraging the hard lines of the sand near the edge of the shore can provide different and interesting horizons for your background. Getting lower on the sand shooting up can provide uniquely angled shots. Using sand as a foreground compositional element when shooting shallow will create a very soft, out-of-focus foreground that can distinctly help your subject stand out.
The flocks. A wonderful opportunity to practice motion blurs and abstracts, flock photography may seem intimidating at first, until you realize that you don’t have to capture the whole flock in one image. Look for frame-filling opportunities as flocks move en masse, either alighting or landing together. Oftentimes, the flock will disperse as one unit, lifting off, then circling wide to come back to where they just took off from. They will do this at periodic intervals, allowing you to practice your shot repeatedly.
No matter whether you are at the shoreline of the ocean, water’s edge of a tidal pool or along a lake line, by practicing these tips, you’ll start developing not only a keen eye for intimate bird behaviors but also a keen sense of when these behaviors will happen.
Gear That Helps You Get The Shot
For most photographers, the first concern with getting low on the beach is, “Won’t my camera get full of sand or, worse yet, wet?” The answer to that question lies in your awareness of your surroundings (is there a wave coming up higher than expected while you are laying near water’s edge?) and also in the type of support gear you are using.
You don’t necessarily need a specialized support to shoot low. When lying on your stomach, your elbows being on the ground naturally brace your camera, which can work very well for short periods of time. If you are planning on spending long sessions in the prone position, however, I recommend utilizing some sort of support mechanism, such as a skimmer pod or tripod with legs that are capable of extending out flat. Not having to hold your camera for long periods of time will help you focus on what you came to do: Create strong images. An excellent added benefit of having your camera on support? It greatly lessens the chance of sand and water getting on it.
Other critical pieces of gear to carry with you: A very soft, clean microfiber sham, a very soft, fine-bristled small paintbrush and a bottle of water. Having these on hand will help you mitigate any elements that you do attract to your camera, so you can gently brush off any salt, sand or water immediately as it happens or once you get back to your vehicle.
Melyssa St. Michael is a wildlife and conservation photographer with a passion for shedding light on local issues and initiatives. See more of her work at melyssastmichael.com.
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]]>Learn the habits and habitats of these readily accessible wildlife subjects to capture their lively interactions.
The post Photographing Foxes appeared first on Outdoor Photographer.
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The red fox (Vulpes vulpes) has the widest geographic distribution of any carnivore in the world and is a fascinating creature to photograph. The first challenge to photographing foxes is finding one—they are masters of camouflage.
To find a fox, you need to know your subject. Where do they live? What are their habits? Where do they raise their young? When is the best time of year to find foxes? When is the best time of day to photograph them?
Finding Foxes
Red foxes like the edges of woods and hills for protection. Although foxes can outrun coyotes, their kits can’t. Coyotes kill fox kits, so foxes den near people, since coyotes tend to be wary of humans.
Foxes travel on the edge of habitats—for example, where a meadow and forest join, or in a suburban area with dense vegetation containing plentiful prey. Foxes are skillful scavengers and eat fruit, insects, frogs, eggs, rodents, small mammals and even baby alligators. Foxes don’t overeat; they cache surplus food for future use, digging a shallow hole and covering it with dirt, twigs and leaves.
Fox dens are holes 7 to 9 inches in diameter, located near water, with access to cover and prey. Their dens can be drainage ditches, spaces under sheds, empty lots with sandy soil, or thickets of brush. Foxes usually have more than one den and will readily move their kits to avoid danger.
Every fox has its own character and is unpredictable. Their territory ranges from less than a mile to 3 miles, but if food is very scarce, it can expand to 40 square miles. The best time to find a fox is in the spring during the blue hours, after the kits have emerged from their den and both parents are busy finding food, grooming the kits and protecting them from harm. Foxes are nocturnal creatures, who also hunt at dusk and dawn.
If you see a fox, slowly stop and use your car as a blind. If you leave your car, park it at least half a block from the fox, and move slowly and quietly toward the fox. Foxes are elusive and can quickly disappear from sight.
Give Them Space, Be Patient And Blend In
My best shots happened at sunrise. I’d arrive about a half hour before dawn, park half a block from the den, set up my camera and quietly crouch by a shrub, kneeling on a cushion with my 600mm lens on a tripod. A low perspective results in a more intimate image, and I’ve found that if I’m low to the ground, I’m less threatening to wildlife. I generally waited anywhere from 15 minutes to an hour, and some days never saw a fox. I waited quietly without movement, and let the foxes get used to my presence.
In the early morning, one of the parents would usually feed the kits. Gradually, the vixen allowed me to observe her nurse the kits, groom the kits and watch them play, stretch, dig and bury caches of food. The foxes knew I was there; they smelled me even though I didn’t wear scented soap. But as long as I didn’t disturb them, they accepted me as part of their neighborhood, and I was fortunate to witness beautiful, moving moments of their lives.
Dawn is quieter than dusk. Although the light was better at dusk, I preferred the solitude of dawn. Few people approached me in the morning, but in the evening, neighbors spotted my big lens, and wanted to chat about what I was photographing. A quick bark from an adult fox caused the kits to retreat into the den whenever neighbors came near.
Catlike Behaviors
To catch their prey, foxes have developed catlike behaviors, such as pouncing. Their large ears enable them to hear well, especially lower frequencies such as the rustling and gnawing made by small mammals. To hunt prey, foxes cock their heads back and forth until they pinpoint the exact location of the sound. This hearing enables them to capture prey they have never seen but have heard in dense underbrush or deep snow.
The anatomy of their eyes is similar to cat eyes—they have vertical-slit pupils that allow them to see in the dark as well as bright daylight. Foxes move quietly and can quickly pounce on prey, even as young kits. Stay focused and be prepared with a fast enough shutter speed to capture their leaps.
Know Your Equipment
Because you will be working in low light, it is essential to know your gear well and be able to change settings as you need to, depending on the situation. I generally use a Canon EOS-1D X with a 600mm lens and a tripod, although I have also handheld my Fujifilm mirrorless camera with a 100-400mm zoom.
Because foxes are skittish, I don’t use flash with them, although some photographers do. I generally start with very high ISO, depending on the light, anywhere from 6400 to 8000, to get at least a 1/500 sec. shutter speed, since foxes move swiftly. I usually shoot at wider apertures (ƒ/4 to ƒ/8) depending on whether one of my 1.4x or 2x tele-extenders is in place. When the light is dim, I have to manually focus, especially if I’m using an extender, which cuts my light.
I use Al Servo (continuous), single-point autofocus, or multi-point AF if the background isn’t busy. Setting my camera’s drive mode to high-speed continuous shooting allows me to capture foxes running and leaping.
Stay With The Story
If you have the luxury to find and follow a fox family, stay with it. After you watch the family for a while, you’ll understand more of their behavior patterns and be able to capture richer images. For example, I set a timer for however long I can stay at the site, allowing me to remain alert and undistracted rather than checking the time. A fox can sneak up from any direction, and occasionally when the wind was in my favor, I surprised the fox as she ran past me to her den. Foxes are intelligent, caring creatures.
Raising Kits
Foxes mate for life and tend to den in the same area. After a gestation period of 53 days, three to six gray kits are born. As devoted parents, they both guard the den, provide food and groom their young. The vixen nurses her young until they reach 5 weeks old. The kits’ fur turns reddish in a few weeks, and when the pups are about 4 or 5 weeks old, they gradually emerge from their den.
As the kits grew, their territory expanded, and the fox family changed dens. My favorite times were watching the kits play like puppies, chasing one another and pouncing on one another as they developed their hunting skills.
Advocate For Wildlife
Although I was tempted at times to feed the vixen, especially since she looked so thin from nursing her kits, I refrained. I didn’t want the foxes to associate me with food and beg for food from other people, who might assume they have rabies. Foxes are sometimes considered pests, and there is much misunderstanding about these predators. One woman in the neighborhood thought foxes broke into houses to eat babies and hired a trapper for an empty lot where the foxes moved their den. Fortunately, we talked her out of it and gave her information on foxes. At 10 pounds, foxes do not eat babies, dogs or cats, as some people fear.
At all times, I considered whether my presence might harm the foxes. My telephoto lens, even covered by shrubs, is noticeable. Would I alert others to their den location and possibly put them in jeopardy? Was I interfering with their natural behaviors? As wildlife photographers, we need to engage in ethical field practices and advocate for the continued presence of wildlife, such as beautiful red foxes. I am grateful for the opportunity to photograph these handsome, adaptable creatures.
See more of Mary Lundeberg’s work at marylundeberg.com.
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]]>Try taking these high-contrast lighting techniques out of the studio and into the wild.
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When you have been a photographer for as many years as I have, it is time to challenge yourself; it is time to create a “look.” In the art world, each artisan eventually generates a style or brand that becomes easily recognizable. I wanted my photography to be memorable to viewers, not only possessing beautiful expression but also a distinctive uniqueness. In my career, this where the idea of high key and low key lighting in nature photography began to evolve.
Most studies in art or photography touch on this methodology and utilize it in the studio. The technique can produce profound images by isolating the photographic subject against a seamless white or black background. Adjusting intensity and angle of light by deploying strobes or finding a location that offers suitable natural light can create a magical mood. Contrast from side lighting and shadows are optional tools. At both ends of the spectrum, each approach is extremely effective, especially with monochromatic palettes. These are controlled methods employed with somewhat compliant subjects.
So, how do high key and low key looks fit into the world of an outdoor photographer? I certainly didn’t tell the flying wood stork in my image Bringing Home the Bounty to look my way and say, “Cheese!” Nor can I place it in the sky exactly where the light is perfect with its wings in the proper position. Here is where the spark of creativity and knowledge of technique comes into play.
As a photographer and a biologist, I am especially intrigued with large wading birds and their behavior. Photographing a bird of significant size in mid air creates a continuous rush of adrenaline—an essential fuel for me, a “little girl" who carries gargantuan equipment into the field. The winter white look is gorgeous when isolating a bird such as great egret in an uncluttered, blanched sky. The reality of this vision seems somewhat far-fetched, as usually these species are seen flying parallel against a mass of trees and chaotic branches. Thus unfolds challenge No. 1—finding a flying bird in a white sky.
High Key Technique
A necessary trait of a successful high key photographer is to become a “weather freak.” Often, I base myself in South Carolina to accommodate drivable distances to shoot locations in Florida. If the trusty weather apps indicate a probability of clouds at a favorite site, I jump into the SUV and head out to do what I call “bird shopping.”
Understanding the routine of the creature you are attempting to photograph is a definite plus. For example, within most large wading bird species, males transport sticks to construct a nest and entice females to the breeding area. To capture the moment, I know I must be at a rookery on a cloudy day during mating season, well prepared with equipment to suit the circumstances. My SUV is always packed to the hilt, carrying no less inventory than a “portable” major photographic supply company. My equipment of choice consists of two camera bodies: one on a tripod, the other hand-held. Lately, I am outfitted with the Nikon D500 in hand and a Nikon D810 secured onto a tripod. For wildlife in motion, a zoom lens will render better keepers. My arsenal is the Nikkor 80-400mm and the Nikkor 200-500mm. On a 4th Generation M-3.6 Mongoose gimbal head secured to a tripod could be a Nikkor 300mm f/2.8 or the 500mm f/4, with or without teleconverters.
Lighting is what will make or break the final result. An external flash can be used and is very effective when outfitted with an extender. It is recommended to use a powerful strobe set with a high sync speed, mounted above the camera. The extender will concentrate the light and render the background a bit whiter than it would be without. Tones will vary due to white balance, but keep in mind, it is more important to force the values brighter than the midtones on a histogram. Overexposure is necessary but not to the extent of blowing out highlights. Two modes are most successful: aperture priority with positive exposure compensation, perhaps + 1 or + 2 EV, or full manual exposure. It is imperative to shoot in RAW, as many times the white balance will appear somewhat bland with slight gray tinges that will require the post-processing flexibility possible with a RAW file. A large aperture will minimize the depth of field and allow a softer background. Smooth panning with the bird in flight at a shutter speed that is fairly high, usually at 1/1000th sec. or greater, will also be necessary. The metering mode will depend on the subject in the composition. During a day with compromised light, it is mandatory to be cognizant of the camera’s exposure settings—aperture, shutter speed and ISO.
Low Key Technique
On the opposite end of the spectrum, using the low key effect, images are dark and contrasty, with a black or smoky gray backdrop. This approach provokes a totally different perspective and feeling of drama. The feathers of a species or other prominent features of a subject can be accentuated and rendered with pleasing visual effects. Using reflections, such as on an opaque black pond, can provide extraordinary results. Often, people who view my photography in the gallery think the fine art images are actually paintings because of the intricate detail. My reply: “I paint with my camera.”
Thinking about attempting low key photography at night? Use my philosophy, “Walk softly and carry a big lens.” Aesthetically, there is nothing more serene than being alone with nature as daylight ends; the enchantment of twilight triggers creativity. It is important not to disturb wildlife; therefore, staying quiet, keeping distance and using a large prime lenses will do the trick. Such is the case with wildlife portraiture in Pelican’s Evening Swim and Heron’s Night Reflection.
Focus must be precisely on the subject’s eye, so I never rely on autofocus, as the camera may randomly set the focus point on undesirable areas. Most of the time, it is necessary to use a long-reaching fill flash with an extender such as the Better Beamer or MagBeam to illuminate perfectly. Though some photographers shy away from flash, I prefer using it over a high ISO setting on the camera. Even though my cameras are tested for high ISO capabilities and software is available to compensate, there still can be evidence of noise on the files when producing a print of significant size shown as a gallery image. Usually, the lowest ISO setting for a stationary subject in the dark would be ISO 400. A larger aperture will most likely be required. Always try to meter the subject correctly, keeping the histogram toward the left.
Pelican’s Evening Swim was made at a pond in J.N. “Ding” Darling National Wildlife Refuge in Florida. This species of white pelicans migrates here and is not a full-time resident. I photographed them earlier in the day but had visions of how incredible a low key image would look. To highlight the magnificent creatures, I wanted to accentuate the ivory plumage; surely a dark pond would suffice as the perfect black backdrop. With dusk approaching, all gear prepared, head net secured to protect against the ferocious mosquitoes, all there was to do was wait for the right moment. Compositionally, I thought it best to concentrate on one bird and create a portrait. The pelican swam, I photographed to my heart’s content and a smile radiated under the head net as I viewed the camera’s monitor. The swirls in the ebony pond reflection reminded me of well-thought-out brushstrokes an artist could have painted with a finely controlled brush. To make the image even more magical was a solitary droplet of water remaining at the end of the pelican’s beak.
High Key And Low Key For Other Subjects
These techniques are not limited to wildlife. They can successfully be used for macro and landscape photography as well. The enigma of what may be found in the wild along with these photographic applications can yield exquisite images. The attempt is to transport the viewer into a realm of subject isolation in the monochromatic background. Aesthetically, when we photographers can erase all that is extraneous, yet infuse and extract the enticing essence of the wild environment, we are truly successful. The high key and low key methods should be experimented with, as they truly broaden the range of innovation and artistry for photographers who dare to challenge themselves and their imaginations.
See more of Pamela Cohen’s work at pamelacohen.com.
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]]>Tips for creating wildlife portraits in support of rescue facilities.
The post Photographing Wildlife Rescues appeared first on Outdoor Photographer.
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After watching an African lioness tend to her young cub for almost an hour, I saw him suddenly jump between her front paws and she settled her chin on his head. My patience rewarded, I captured a great, intimate moment between a mother and her youngster. Wildlife photography can be challenging, capturing just the right moment can take hours (or days), and it can be expensive, with trips to many wildlife hot spots quite costly.
There is an alternative that can be both a rewarding photo experience and a great way to help the wildlife you care about. There are hundreds of wildlife rescue facilities throughout the United States that care for wildlife. Almost all of these facilities operate as charitable organizations and survive solely on contributions from the public. You can find rescue facilities in your local area with a Google search. Contact the organization, and offer your services as a wildlife photographer. If they will allow you to photograph the animals, offer to provide them with your copyrighted images for use in education and fundraising. You get some stunning images of animals you might never see in the wild, like a binturong, which is found in Vietnam, or unique behavior, like a lioness interacting with her young cub, and the organization gets the use of some of your images. All parties come out winners.
I have been a volunteer at the Wildlife Waystation, a wildlife rescue/rehabilitation facility, since 1987. My first visit was actually for a photo shoot with some of its animals. I got hooked and began volunteering. Over the years, my photographs have been used as auction prints, public education presentations and brochures, and I have produced a book on the facility for its use in fundraising. I also license many of the images created there in books, magazines and calendars, with a percentage of each sale going to the facility as a donation.
The Wildlife Waystation is a very big operation. At one time, it housed over 1,200 wild animals. Sadly, while many native species come to the Waystation as babies fallen from a nest or found abandoned (and are rehabilitated back to the wild whenever possible), too many animals arrive after being confiscated from abuse situations. When I am photographing at the facility, I have to remember these are wild animals. I am often photographing through caging or fencing or in enclosures. Because I am concentrating on my photography, I have a trained person with me who "watches my back" to make sure nothing "happens.” If you pursue this type of photography, I cannot emphasize enough the importance of this. You can get so wrapped up in your photography that you can lose sight of what is going on around you. Bring someone with you who can watch your back, too. You will also discover how unbelievably fast wild animals can be.
If you do get an opportunity like this, work with the organization as long as you can. You may be able to document the development of an animal over time, creating a great reference body of work for a potential book, or for articles or public education on the species. When two young tiger cubs arrived at the facility, I was able to photograph them when they arrived and for the next several years. Photographs like these proved very beneficial to the organization and helped me understand the species’ behavioral traits.
In the case of the young cubs, I was photographing through the enclosure fencing and wanted to isolate the cubs from any distracting elements, so I cropped close with my medium telephoto zoom lens. In photographing them as adults, I was also photographing through the enclosure fencing but wanted to show them in the environment, so I zoomed out to include more of their habitat. Because you will often be photographing through some form of fencing, I recommend a rubberized shade that attaches to the front element of your lens. The rubber will give a little so you can get right up to the fencing. The lens shade will also help reduce the sunlight glare off the fencing. Also, use your camera’s depth-of-field preview button to make sure you do not have fencing elements along the outer edges of your frame.
By working with the organization over time, you can learn a lot about the wildlife at the facility. This behavioral information can be helpful when you want to document some unique behavior or trait of a given animal. For example, male lions in the wild are pretty aggressive to the females during mating. Lions in the wild also live in complex groups called prides. Wildlife facilities will, to the best of their ability, attempt to replicate an animal's conditions in the wild.
As I mentioned earlier, wild animals can be extremely fast, and they are often unpredictable. Make sure you are prepared for that special moment. You will move around a lot, so hand-holding the camera is a must—use your camera or lens image stabilization settings to help.
With rescue facilities, you may be limited by the caging, and they may not always have the most photogenic backgrounds. Study the surroundings of your wildlife subject and consider photographing when the sun is in a favorable spot or when it’s slightly overcast. However, the animal is also somewhat restricted by the size of the enclosure, so you might be able to pre-focus, or limit your focus range, to get the animal in focus quickly. You can also take some test shots to see how the background looks and try different depth-of-field settings to see if that helps.
Whatever your settings and focus situation, make sure the animal's eyes are in focus unless you are creating blur pans. Also, use your continuous, high-speed shooting setting. You cannot capture action or the special moment with one lucky shot—go for the sequence whenever possible.
Wildlife rescue facilities are great places to capture stunning portrait images. When in an enclosure, animals will often rest for long periods. Get to know your subject. He or she may use the same log or perch quite often. Be prepared. You might be amazed at the images you can capture.
While you may have a tendency to focus on the big, impact species like lions and tigers, the smaller or lesser-known species are often the ones who need our help advocating for their plight. Lemurs are found only on the island of Madagascar, an island suffering significant habitat loss for a variety of reasons. Photographs of these magnificent animals can help educate the public to their situation. Ruffed and ringtail lemurs arrived at the Waystation one day, and I was able to photograph them. It took a significant amount of time to get the right poses, because they are extremely active and very curious. They would actually reach through the enclosure fencing to change my camera settings. Again, a spotter helped ensure the lemurs and I were both kept safe.
Most rescue facilities are located away from populated areas. The animals at these facilities need to be fed, and food is often present in an animal's enclosure during feeding. This is the time when you might look to photograph opportunistic local wildlife that comes in to steal a little food. A California ground squirrel was a steady visitor and, during late spring and summer, southern Pacific rattlesnakes would prowl the facility looking for wild mice. These types of images add to your overall species coverage, and this photography is usually a lot of fun. There are numerous opportunities at these facilities to tell stories with your photographs.
One important note about photographing at these facilities (and when photographing animals in the wild): You often have less than optimal lighting conditions, and the use of fill flash would greatly enhance your image. Be careful. Take a couple of test shots and, if your subject reacts negatively to the flash, do not use it! It's not worth scaring the animal just to get a photograph.
My most lasting memory of my time at the rescue facility was when I was introduced to a six-week-old ball of fur, a gray wolf named Navarre. He was given to the Waystation by an individual who purchased him as a pet in another state and then moved to our state, where ownership of wolves is illegal (there are special permits for research, breeding and zoo display). I spent almost 15 years with Navarre as an honorary "pack member" and knew him well. He was a magnificent animal and I lost a true "friend" when he left us.
Check out facilities near you. You may one day have stories (and friends) like these to tell.
See more of Dave Welling’s work at strikingnatureimagesbydavewelling.com, and learn about the Wildlife Waystation at wildlifewaystation.org.
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]]>Techniques and insights for photographing bald eagles, the beautiful but often unpredictable birds of prey.
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Finding Perspective When Photographing Bald Eagles
Apparently eagles, like humans, prefer high-rise waterfront views and pick their nesting tree accordingly. Since their nest, 100 feet up in an eastern white pine, was mostly visible from the water, I developed (after some experimentation) a shooting approach using a canoe. A friend made me a “legless” chair for the bottom of the canoe so I could sit in comfort and use the canoe like a kayak. This gave me an easily maneuverable and stable platform—most of the time. The biggest problem was drifting due to current or wind, countered on occasion by tying up on the opposite shore, though my view of the nest was somewhat reduced. I was typically shooting at a distance of 100 yards or more from the nest to have the best possible view of the nest as well as the eagles’ ingress and egress routes. The eagles were unperturbed by the presence of my canoe as they were accustomed to seeing kayaks, canoes and small engine power boats on the lake.
Gear & Exposure Settings
My camera set up consisted of a camera and a Canon 800mm lens mounted on a Wimberley WH-200 gimbal head supported by a Manfrotto 682B monopod. With this arrangement, the camera and lens were balanced and required little effort to hold during shooting sessions that often stretched for several hours.
Bald eagles are particularly challenging to photograph, as they are a high-contrast subject with white head and tail and dark brown body. To obtain a good photograph, the head must be properly exposed, necessitating shooting at -1 EV (exposure value) or more in order not to overexpose the head. Some underexposure of the body can be compensated for in post processing, but a blown-out head results in a picture headed for the trash bin.
A mix of camera bodies and a prime lens with and without an extender enabled me to achieve effective focal lengths of 800mm to 1456mm. This provided me the flexibility to frame photos based on their activity on the nest and nearby perches.
To capture sharp in-flight shots, I tried to make sure that my shutter speed was at least 1/1600 of a second or higher. I shot in aperture priority mode and set a depth of field to keep all of the elements of the scene at the nest in focus. The nest was over 10 feet across and an eagle’s wingspread is about 7 feet. Thus, I usually tried to shoot at about ƒ/8, which yields a depth of field of about 13 feet at 100 yards for the 800mm lens. I would adjust the ISO manually to achieve these settings for the given light situation that day.
Bald Eagle Habitat & Behavior
Light on the nest was best from late afternoon until sunset. This was also when the parents would often bring in a fish to feed the chicks, providing the best photographic opportunities. Photographing wildlife requires considerable patience, but putting in the time will yield results.
If there is one thing that I learned, it was that eagles are unpredictable. I had to be on constant alert, as they could appear without warning, flying in from any direction. Some days consisted of watching an adult and the chicks just sleeping and grooming. Other times, they would bring in two or three fish within a half hour, and I would easily shoot hundreds of frames. To be a successful wildlife photographer requires both planning and perseverance, along with good equipment and mastery of its use—not to mention that you need to find the subject to start with!
I first spotted the two chicks, looking much like baby dinosaurs, peeking out of the nest in mid-May. Eagle parents are very dedicated to their offspring. When the chicks are small and vulnerable, one parent always stays in or near the nest to protect them from predators. The female spent the most of her time on guard duty while the male did most of the fishing.
It was interesting to note the different habits of the two adults as they interacted with the chicks. When the female brought a fish back to the nest, she would tear off pieces and feed the chicks, while the male would typically fly in, drop off the fish and leave it for the female to feed the young. The firstborn chick is dominant and it is fed first to ensure the survival of at least one chick.
As the chicks grew larger and stronger, the parents began to leave them alone for longer periods of time. The youngsters spent much of their time looking to the sky for their parents and screeching endlessly for food. When a parent arrived back at the nest and fed them, they would quiet down and take a nap.
In preparation for flight, the chicks would vigorously flap their wings to develop their muscles. By early July, they began hovering a few feet above the nest and then bravely rose up to 20 to 30 feet, often making very awkward crash landings back into the nest. They appeared amazed at what they discovered they could do! The dominant chick was clearly a risk-taker while its younger sibling would look on in apparent awe.
As they grew to near adult size the parents spent less and less time in close proximity to the nest, returning only to bring in fish to feed the chicks. However, the parents seemed to be always nearby as one would suddenly appear out of nowhere if there were a perceived threat. One day an osprey flew in and hovered high above the nest, and the male eagle immediately flew to the top of the highest tree near the nest to aggressively defend his territory. The osprey flew off, but the male maintained his rather precarious perch for over an hour, scanning the sky. No sooner had he moved to a lower, more substantial branch, than a 3-year-old adult bald eagle flew by and the adult male launched an attack to drive away the interloper.
Photographing Bald Eagles Leaving The Nest
In mid-July, when the chicks were 12 weeks old, they fledged from the nest. They continued to roost in the trees nearby, regularly flying from tree to tree, developing their flight skills and continuing to make awkward landings. In just a couple of weeks, they could be seen soaring and pirouetting high in the sky, showing the beauty of eagles on the wing.
While they grow very quickly during their first months of life and master flying with relative ease, bald eagles take five years to reach maturity and obtain their classic white head and tail feathers. The change in the color of their head and tail feathers is gradual, and young adults often have a mottled appearance, especially after their third year. As they move toward maturity, their beaks change from a dark brownish black to bright yellow, and their eye color goes from brownish black to yellow as well.
After the chicks fledged, the family dynamics changed. While they remained in the vicinity of the nest, the family no longer actively visited it as the nest is only used as a place for nurturing the young before they can fly. The adults continued to feed the chicks for about two months as they matured. They stopped feeding them in the nest and instead brought fish to locations on the ground. Eagle parents take an active role in teaching their young how to fish. I was fortunate to witness the female showing a youngster how to fish by hovering and swooping down to the water repeatedly in an effort to have the youngster mimic her actions.
A family squabble occurred one day when the two youngsters were sitting on the ground squawking for food. The dominant sibling flew off to a perch in a tree, and the younger sibling flew forward to take the spot just vacated. Soon thereafter, the male flew in with a fish that he gave to the younger sibling, which scurried off to the protection of some low pine tree branches to devour its meal. The dominant chick flew in screeching and attacked the male for giving away “its” fish. The male flew to the top of the tree and the dominant sibling followed, knocking him off his branch. As he flew away, the youngster took the tree top perch and proceeded to raise his head straight up, screeching in apparent anger at the male’s temerity in feeding the younger sibling first. The female sat in a nearby tree watching but chose not to get involved.
You might be surprised, as I was, to discover that eagles can swim. One day the male swooped down to catch a fish and somehow ended up in the water. Totally soaked, he looked around as if to assess the situation and swam forward doing a breaststroke with his wings for 20 to 30 yards. He then flew a short distance to a log where he shook off the water and groomed himself.
During August, the young eagles could be seen roosting in trees over a mile from the nest, usually with one of the adults nearby. In early September, all four eagles disappeared from the area. When the adults reappeared later in September, the youngsters were no longer in tow. They had apparently been sent off to find their own way in the world. Thus, my time with the Adirondack eagle family became a cherished memory.
Bald eagles were reintroduced to the Adirondack Park though a New York program in the 1970s, and several mated pairs now make their home in the park. The two adults I watched are both banded, and through their registration numbers I was able to learn their background. New York State’s Department of Environmental Conservation personnel banded the female (E74) as a chick in 2001 near Tusten, New York. The Massachusetts Division of Fisheries and Wildlife personnel banded the male (WK3) in 2002 near Conway, Massachusetts. Somehow they found each other and have made their home in the Adirondacks for at least eight years.
In a sad postscript, the next spring disaster struck when a severe windstorm broke a major branch supporting the nest. The nest was totally destroyed as it crashed to the ground and, along with it, a single chick. The short breading season in the Adirondacks precluded starting another family that year. The eagle pair continues to be seen around the lake, but a new nest, if there is one, has yet to be located.
Howard Arndt’s Wildlife Photography Gear
- Canon EOS-1D X Mark I
- Canon EOS-1D Mark IV
- Canon EOS 7D Mark II
- Canon EF 800mm f/5.6L IS USM
- Canon Extender EF 1.4x III
- Wimberley WH-200 Gimbal Head
- Manfrotto 682B Monopod
- LensCoat lens cover & RainCoat
Howard Arndt is a wildlife and conservation photographer based in Amherst, New Hampshire. He has won several awards, including a photo selected as one of the Top 100 in Audubon’s 2016 Photo Contest. See more of Arndt’s work at howardarndtphoto.com.
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]]>Four techniques to add visual interest and a sense of motion to your wildlife photography.
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]]>Over the last several months, I experimented with creative blurs on a diversity of wildlife subjects. Not only have I learned a lot, but I have had a blast practicing. Here are four images from my recent photographic adventures around the world and the techniques I used to capture them.
There are hundreds of ways to produce creative blurs. My intention is not to give you a comprehensive study of the concepts. Rather, my hope is that you will enjoy viewing these images as much as I enjoyed creating them, and that they will inspire you to travel, get out there and make your own.
Pan Blurs
Have a solid tripod to support your camera when shooting any kind of creative blur. Unwanted vibration is the nemesis of this type of photography. On an African safari tour, it is virtually impossible to set up a tripod in the vehicles, so I shoot off beanbags or a monopod mounted to the side of the vehicle using a Really Right Stuff Safari Rig. A polarizer or neutral density filter on sunny days allows shooting at slower shutter speeds and larger apertures and thus avoiding diffraction.
This type of blur is fairly popular. The camera settings are not difficult to master but, as with all creative blurs, they take incredible patience, practice and a bit of luck. I attempt panning images on overcast days as low light is beneficial in achieving the slow shutter speeds required. My favorite shutter speeds fall between 1/10 to 1/125 sec. I usually determine my shutter speed on the fly based on the subject’s speed, distance and angle of movement. Experiment with different shutter speeds and dial it in before the action occurs. In general, the faster the shutter speed, the less motion blur you will get, and the slower the shutter speed, the lower your “keeper” ratio will be. A fine balancing act, for sure.
Once you configure your settings, the real secret here is perseverance. If your subjects, like mine, are wild and unpredictable, expect to take a few hundred before you get the perfect shot. Stick with it, and you will produce stunning results.
Wing Blurs
Snowy owls are among my favorite birds in the world. Their massive wings and graceful flight place them as the crown jewel for nature photographers. Until recently, accomplishing this type of image was met with little success, but repetition and persistence proved to be the key—I took more than 1,000 unusable photos over three weeks in the field to capture this one striking frame. In this case, my efforts came with a high reward when National Geographic published the image on its website and used it as a marketing piece for an international photo contest.
Zoom Blurs
Using a zoom lens, you can attain this type of image using slow shutter speeds and a tripod. For this technique, I recommend practicing on a stationary subject first (a tree or flower). To start, try a one-second exposure, allowing the subject to ‘burn' into the sensor before zooming at the very end to create the streaks. Then experiment with increasingly fast shutter speeds like 1/25 and zoom throughout the duration of the exposure. You will find quite a bit of creative control in this technique.
One important suggestion here is to position both your subject (usually the eye of the animal) and focal point in the center of the frame. That way, your streaks lead directly toward your subject. If the focus point is off to the side, the lines will point in that direction. You can crop in post processing to get your subject out of the center, which most photographers prefer. Once you get the hang of it, attempt this on more difficult moving subjects.
Water Blurs
I shoot this type of image the same way I would a waterfall, but incorporating wildlife adds a level of difficulty. In this example, if any of the bears move at all during the slow exposure, they will surely blur and ruin the effect. Again, take lots of frames with the hope that one will come out perfectly. Choose a stable platform for your tripod, use a shutter release, and activate mirror lockup to prevent shutter slap. Any small vibration will kill the sharpness of the animal’s appearance. In post, I applied selective sharpening on the bears for an added level of detail.
Creative blurs are a fun yet challenging method to produce unique-looking images. I have had a blast experimenting with different techniques with some great success along the way. My hope is that these images serve as an inspiration for creating your own spectacular wildlife photos. See you out there.
Aaron Baggenstos is an award-winning professional wildlife photographer from Seattle, Washington. He specializes in leading photography tours and workshops in Alaska, Yellowstone, Costa Rica and Africa. See more of his work at aaronbaggenstos.com.
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]]>Panoramas aren't just for landscapes! Use this technique to create portraits of wildlife that reveal your subjects in their habitats.
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A wildlife panorama image is one of the most beautiful ways to show wildlife in their environment. Unlike traditional landscape panoramas, however, wildlife panoramas have subjects that move across the landscape, which can be problematic. When I started shooting wildlife panoramas, I often created a bison with two heads or a moose with two butts. The success rate of these types of images can be low, but with the techniques outlined here, you will be well on your way to increasing your success rate.
As with traditional panoramas, you will want to shoot in portrait format and overlap about one-third of each frame. Usually, you would start at the edge of your panorama and then move left or right, but wildlife panoramas are different.
Steps To Create A Wildlife Panorama
- First you want to capture the image of your subject and then create the panorama around that first frame.
- Once you have your first frame, overlap one-third of each frame to one side until you reach the edge of the scene you want to capture (see illustration below).
- Do the same on the opposite side of your first frame, ensuring you are also overlapping by one-third of a frame.
- The most common pitfall is overlapping your frames while your subject is moving into a new frame. If your subject is moving in the direction you are overlapping, allow it to completely exit the frame before snapping your overlapped frame. Allowing the subject to stay in the frame will lead to the dreaded double butt or double head.
Creating a wildlife panorama requires planning and a little luck. When making this image, I anticipated that the bison might want cross the fence. Noticing a break in the fence, I set up my tripod and planned my first shot around the bison crossing at that point. I got a little lucky by guessing correctly. I then panned left and right, making sure he was not in any of my other frames.
It takes a bit of practice, but stick to it, and before you know it you will become addicted to making these images — at least that’s what happened to me.
For tips and gear to create better panoramas with and without wildlife, see "Tools For Panoramas" and our "Panorama Primer."
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]]>Lessons learned in my quest to photograph the great gray, one of nature’s most rare and elusive owls.
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Magnificent and striking, the great gray owl holds the honor of being the world’s largest owl, found primarily in the boreal forests and western mountains of North America and Eurasia. A highly sought subject for wildlife photographers, the great gray owl has aptly earned the nickname of “Great Gray Ghost” as low population density, coupled with an elusive nature and well-mottled plumage, makes them exceptionally difficult to find, even in the most pristine conditions.
While owls in general often garner top spots on a wildlife photographer’s wish list, for me, they go far beyond simply being a subject to photograph — they have immense personal meaning. Not too long ago, my destiny into conservation photography was forever cemented by a chance encounter at a local wildlife reserve with a great horned owl hooting to its mate late one winter evening. At that point in my fledgling photography journey, I had never heard, let alone seen, an owl in person.
I will never forget that day. I was traversing along a well-trodden deer path when rich baritone hoots suddenly rang overhead, stopping me dead in my tracks. I paused, questioning that I was actually hearing what I thought I was hearing. Following the echo of each hoot, I eventually found the owner, a beautiful great horned owl with large, prominent ear tufts silhouetted against the very last light of an early winter sunset. Heart racing, I lifted my camera, said a small prayer, and took my very first picture of an owl.
Though I didn’t know it at the time, my fate was sealed with that single click — the owl had captured my heart. I went back to that very spot over the next several weeks, working hard to unobtrusively observe and document this great horned owl pair rearing their chicks, while making sure not to distress them with my presence. It was a life-changing experience for me, where, like it or not, I had become hopelessly smitten with this incredible species.
My time with the great horned owls unlocked a year of conservation photography work alongside a local scientist studying migrating northern saw-whet owls, which deepened my interest and appreciation in how the habitats and environments of our local landscapes can support many species of owls, even if they are not full-time residents. While doing my research in preparation to photograph the saw-whets, I was introduced to their home in the boreal forest, where I encountered, and instantly became enamored with, the great gray owl. And so my quest began.
Knowing that I was soon to attend the Summit Nature and Wildlife Photography Workshop in Grand Teton National Park, Wyoming, my brain exploded. I was going to be in the perfect location to find, observe and photograph this stunning creature that I so craved to get to know. I could barely contain my excitement. I began researching in earnest, using every tool I had at my disposal to aid in identifying possible locations to find a great gray, from looking at eBird (ebird.org) data to understand location patterns, to regularly visiting Flickr hoping there would be recent postings that could help pinpoint an initial scouting spot once I got to Wyoming. I knew full well that there would be a very slim chance of finding a great gray owl, let alone the opportunity to photograph one. I was determined, however, and went through great lengths to ensure that if such an opportunity did present itself, I was fully armed with as much knowledge as possible about the great gray in order to make meaningful images that truly reflect the unique beauty of this incredible species.
For several days of visiting multiple locations with hours spent fruitlessly searching, talking to park rangers and others, I’d return to my hotel room to log onto Flickr only to find that someone had posted a picture of a great gray from that same day, in a location I had scouted earlier with no success; I’d missed the owl by a few hours. But I was close. It was simply a matter of luck and timing.
I found my great gray on the fourth day of my quest. I woke up at 3 a.m. on the second-to-last day of the trip with my instincts screaming to make the two-hour drive north to check the one location I hadn’t yet scouted. I was supposed to be participating in the Summit Workshop that day, but the feeling was too strong, and I agreed with my internal barometer—I needed to get up and get going. I needed to go find my great gray owl.
Geared up, I headed out in the pitch black of night along a road I had never driven before, praying the GPS coordinates I had punched into Google Maps would get me there. Thankfully, I arrived a little before dawn and was able to make my way in the pre-dawn light. As dawn broke, I took stock of my surroundings: open long-grass fields began to glow against the backlight of the rising sun; tall lodgepole pines surrounding the fields acted as a light filter, streaming beautiful gold-pink sunlight onto a dew-laden landscape. The beauty before me was breathtaking, making me feel like I was in an undiscovered magical world. With such a beautiful visage in front of me, my hopes of finding the great gray soared. I felt this could be the day, and the place, to find my great gray. I was running out of time, with only one more day left to search.
Not knowing where to start, I shouldered my camera and randomly picked a direction in which to start walking. How do you find a needle in a haystack? You don’t. You let the needle find you. Twenty minutes into trekking across forest and field, I came upon a small clearing ablaze with the golden light of the now-risen morning sun. As my eyes scanned the far edge of the field, they came to rest on a large gold-silhouetted figure perched on a low branch, intensely studying the ground below. I caught my breath. Could this possibly be a great gray?
I blinked, and in that moment, before I could discern which species I was looking at, the golden figure launched up and off its perch to dive, headfirst, into the grasses below. I followed its descent to the ground, where I found a pair of very large yellow eyes framed within a beautifully ringed round face staring right back at me. I had found my great gray.
Over the next day and a half, I spent as much time as possible following, observing and photographing this owl from a respectful distance through a 600mm lens. I learned from a local biologist that he was a juvenile male and had been in the area for the last six weeks. I was thrilled to be able to watch him hunt, feed, preen and then fly to a new perch, where he started his process all over again. I celebrated every successful hunt and prayed for success on the next try when he missed, all the while grateful to the point of tears for this opportunity.
As my time with him wore on, I discovered that I wasn’t the only one who knew of his existence. He was very much a celebrity owl. From professional photographer to tourist, word of this great gray owl had spread far and wide, and he drew massive crowds all day long. At one point, I counted 65 people, standing in a tight circle around him, watching. He never seemed bothered that people were present; he continued on with his mission of hunting as if we weren’t there. His behavior led me to wonder if he had acclimated to humans and simply saw us as being part of his environment.
Each time he flew to a new perch, his adoring fans would follow in suit, and we would move from perch to perch just as he did. After doing this a few times, it began to feel like we were chasing him, causing me to wonder if our presence was in any way hurting him. Several times the crowds had pushed him to fly dangerously low over a busy road, and I had noticed that the more people were present, the less successful he was at hunting.
All too soon, it was time for me to bid this beautiful creature goodbye and depart for home. I took my last frame, of him hunting from the top of a short pine, again surrounded by a group of awestruck onlookers. I thanked him for his gift of images to me and wished him a long, healthy life. Packing up my gear, I headed off.
I arrived back at my hotel that evening and was met with the most unexpected, horrific news. My great gray owl had been struck by a car and killed a few hours after I had left him. My heart sank and my stomach turned. I was, and still am, devastated.
Logically, I know there are millions of owls killed every year by car strikes, rodenticide poisoning and multiple other human-inflicted causes, with less than one-third of juveniles making it to adulthood. My heart, however, mourns deeply that he is no longer soaring wild and free, through forests and fields, hunting from the top of his favorite perches, lamenting the fact that quite possibly, though unwittingly, our great adoration of his species and the want to witness his spectacular presence may have greatly contributed to his demise.
Over the past few weeks, I have done a good bit of soul searching, contemplating my actions and critically reviewing my steps to see if there was anything I could have done differently to place less stress on the great gray. At one point, he flew from a perch several hundred yards away to a perch that was within 10 feet of me — I took one frame of him as he landed and promptly picked up my tripod with camera attached and moved swiftly back from his new location. That moment has led me to recognize that yes, while there were things I could have done differently, such as not stay with him as long and use my extender in certain instances so that I could be further away. By and large the simple fact of me just being there brings a whole new dynamic to the context of what he has to navigate in his environment.
Therein lies the dichotomy of being in love with nature. Our passion and wonder for wild lives drive us to participate in the natural world, and, by our very presence alone, we will always have an impact on wildlife. The type of impact we have, however, is solely up to us. We can choose to have either a positive or negative impact through our actions, which either help or harm the wildlife we are observing. As wildlife photographers, we have an even greater opportunity to have impact, not just through the images we work so hard to capture, bringing to life the stories of the animals we care so deeply about, but through educating ourselves and others to have the least amount of negative impact on our subjects.
While the general public may not realize that directly approaching a great gray on its hunting perch to take a picture is stressful and disruptive to the owl, we do. We can use our images, our knowledge and the reach of our social networks to help educate our friends and followers, our fellow lovers of wildlife, on how to respectfully observe the amazing creatures that inhabit our earth to cause the least amount of distress and disturbance.
Melyssa St. Michael is a wildlife and conservation photographer with a passion for shedding light on local issues and initiatives. See more of her work at melyssastmichael.com.
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]]>Approaches to macro photography that highlight the unseen world around us.
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It is hard for me to imagine why anyone wouldn’t be fascinated with the smaller creatures with which we share our world. Since I was a child, I have been utterly spellbound by—obsessed with, really—insects, reptiles and amphibians. They live all around us, carrying on lives that are comprised of the stuff of science fiction films, all wrapped up in an array of the most wondrous, delightful, perfectly developed forms that one could ever imagine. Some of the best travels that I’ve ever undertaken have been on my hands and knees, carefully peering into the leaf litter in my backyard, like an observant giant flipping open the lid to an uncharted universe.
I would have never dreamt that this innate passion would one day turn into a career. Over the years, as a natural history and conservation photographer, I’ve had the privilege of working with some of the world’s leading conservation organizations. Much of my time is spent dreaming up new ways to use my macro photography to convince others to take care of these important creatures before they are lost forever to the great void of extinction. There are different approaches to conservation photography, and the tactic that I’ve used most often, or attempted to utilize, anyway, is the production of creative macro photography that surprises viewers, and hopefully fills them with enough joy or wonder that they begin to advocate for the protection of these precious creatures.
What follows is a selection of a few of my favorite subjects and images from the past few years, with insight into why and how I made each photo. While some subjects are from far-flung places, I caution against falling into the trap of thinking one must travel to distant lands to find subjects worth documenting. I can say without reservation that no species have enchanted me more than those I have had the opportunity to interact with on a regular basis in the streams, fields and forests near my own home. In fact, I would encourage anyone who is interested in becoming a conservation photographer to begin in his or her own community. As Robert Michael Pyle has written, “What is the extinction of a condor, to a child who has never seen a wren?” So it goes for all of us, no matter the age.
Macro Photography: Keeping It Natural
The importance of understanding a subject
Few things are more important to the wildlife photographer than time spent to understand the biology of a subject before you encounter it in the field. Just as a professional athlete spends countless hours watching highlight reels and running practice drills, so should the nature photographer have a thorough understanding of a subject’s prime habitat and behavior before seeking it out. You might only have one chance to document an elusive subject, so being prepared for the moment is essential. While we all get lucky from time-to-time, I’ve always found that the harder I work, the luckier I get!
Rough green snake, Pickens, South Carolina
For several years, I had dreamed of encountering a rough green snake in the wild. These graceful, non-venomous, insect-eating snakes mimic the rocking motion of tree branches and other vegetation in the breeze.
On a hike near my former South Carolina home, I came face-to-face with this individual doing just that. Because I knew that this was a shy creature, rather than rushing in to get the shot, I quietly followed the snake, paying close attention to its body postures to ensure it felt relaxed and comfortable. Using a 180mm macro lens, I was able to create the more artistic image I had in mind, rather than a photo of a snake that was in obvious distress.
Leafcutter bee building her nest, Pickens, South Carolina
Female leafcutter bees make cradles for their young from perfectly trimmed circles of leaves. I had spent some time researching leafcutter bees and observing them in the wild for an ongoing project on North American native bees. In time, I gained a feel for how often females would forage and return to their nests with new construction materials. Because of this, I was able to position my camera, pre-focused in the right position above the nest site, along with fill flash so that I could freeze the action within the few seconds when she approached the nest entrance each time.
Taking It All In
Using wide-angle macro to tell the story of a small subject
I often use wide-angle macro photography in my work, which allows me to show a very small subject in the context of its environment. This can be crucial when my mission is to visually connect an obscure species to the habitat it requires for survival.
For this technique, my favorite lens is the Sigma 15mm F2.8 EX DG Diagonal Fisheye, which allows me to get very close to small subjects while still offering sufficient background details. A similar effect can be achieved using a standard wide angle lens coupled with a short extension tube.
Limosa harlequin frog, Cocobolo Nature Reserve, Panama
I feel both privileged and pained when I have the opportunity to make images whose intention are to inform the public about the plight of a species that is in eminent danger of extinction. For the past couple of years, I have been working in Panama at the Cocobolo Nature Reserve to document the last known breeding population of a species of frog that has declined severely over the past couple of decades due to chytrid fungus. Chytrid has ravaged amphibian populations worldwide. By giving the viewer a sense of the habitat that a rare species needs, while showing its form in beautiful light, it both tells a story and (hopefully) serves as a call to action for its protection.
Hunt’s bumblebee, Bozeman, Montana
For the past three years, I’ve been focusing much of my time on documenting and telling the story of North America’s native bees. We have nearly 4,000 species north of Mexico, and bumblebees—arguably our most well-known native bee species—are also some of our most threatened. One in four species of North American bumblebees are at risk of extinction today.
The wonderful thing about bumblebees, like many native pollinators, is that they thrive when they have native plants for food and a pesticide-free environment. For this image, wide-angle macro photography allowed me to showcase the fact that this beautiful bee was thriving in a community garden in Bozeman, Montana, rather than in a wildlife preserve.
Being Dramatic: The Darkside
Create striking mini portraits with multiple off-camera flashes
I used to be one of those nature photographers who only shot with available light. Truth be told, this was due, at least in part, to the fact that flashes intimidated me. It didn’t feel natural to be fiddling with dials in the great outdoors. However, once I learned my way around them, I’ve never gone back. Off-camera flashes allow me to shoot in just about any type of lighting condition, from sun-up to sundown, and also make it possible for me to produce dramatic, model-like portraits of small creatures. This technique offers a great way to really bring out the details in small subjects that might otherwise elude a person’s eye. I use two contrasting techniques to do this.
One of the simplest ways that you can produce beautiful portraits of small creatures is by either placing a dark cloth behind the subject or underexposing the available light in the scene. Next, place one flash in front of the subject for fill light (to bring out the details) and another flash behind the subject to produce a rim-light. Voila! An instant glamour shot.
Resting orchid bee, Cocobolo Nature Reserve, Panama
Orchid bees are fast-flying species of bees mainly found in the tropics of Central and South America. During the daylight hours, these denizens of deep tropical forests rarely stop moving. However, in the evening, males sleep by clamping themselves onto vegetation. This unique and interesting behavior presented me with the perfect opportunity to produce a portrait of this living jewel.
Harris’ three spot caterpillar, Pickens, South Carolina
Without a doubt, Harris’ Three Spot caterpillar is one of the most bizarre creatures I’ve ever encountered. It has the ability to fool its potential predators by mimicking a bird dropping or a creepy spider, and if that doesn’t work, it thrashes about using hairs containing bits of exoskeleton from previous molts as weapons. When I came across this cool creature, I wanted to photograph it in a way that showed off its incredible form and fascinating weaponized hairs. Without the backlighting shown in this portrait, they would have been lost in the background.
Being Dramatic: Into The Light
In 2009, I co-founded an international photography-based biodiversity awareness project called Meet Your Neighbours (MYN). Today, MYN photographers can be found around the world, documenting the interesting, often common species that are found within their own communities.
One of the hallmarks of the project is the unique way in which we produce our images. Subjects are shot on or against a brightly lit white panel set that we call the “field studio.” The panel is lit from beneath or behind by a flash, which eliminates all of the detail in the background (rendering each RGB channel 255, or pure white). Next, one or two fill flashes with small softboxes are used to highlight the subject’s form. Some species show interesting patterns or translucencies that would typically go unnoticed. The mission of the project is to help viewers see common species that are overlooked in a new light.
Orchard orb weaver spider, Pickens, South Carolina
While I’ve used the MYN technique in many exotic locations, true to the project’s form, much of my contribution to Meet Your Neighbours work was produced in my previous South Carolina backyard. A species that I’ve been familiar with since I was a kid was the orchard orb weaver spider—a species smaller than a grain of rain. I never realized just how beautiful it was until I photographed it in the field-studio.
Arboreal salamander, San Francisco, California
This tree-dwelling salamander is unique in that it is one of the only known reptiles to have “teeth.” I had dreamed of encountering this species for several years when my colleague Neil Losin and I discovered it during the National Geographic BioBlitz. The MYN technique offered the perfect way to highlight the sleek form of the amazing amphibian.
Atlantic brief squid, Awendaw, South Carolina
Several years ago, I worked with The Nature Conservancy to document species that lived within and around oyster reefs along the Carolina coastline. Atlantic waters are dark and silted, so I needed a way to showcase the diversity of species in a clear and detailed manner.
Using a tank that I constructed with a white plexiglass back and sides, I was able to photograph an entire array of reef creatures right on the shoreline, returning them back to the ocean within a matter of minutes.
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I still remember the first time I tried a 500mm ƒ/4 super-telephoto lens a few years back, and it wasn’t pretty. Having rented the lens for the weekend, I was overwhelmed by its size, and I was a bit self-conscious to bring it out to a local park in Los Angeles near where I lived. As I was carrying the lens and walking from the parking lot to the river where there was an egret rookery, I felt as if everybody there was looking at me. It took me half an hour to figure out how to fit the heavy lens onto the tripod, and by then I was soaked in sweat. I saw a great egret preening in the rookery about 50 feet away, so I pointed the camera toward it. I couldn’t locate the egret at all by moving the lens. All I saw was patches of green. Then the egret took flight, and, of course, I was far from being able to focus on the bird.
Within a few years, however, I was able to create lots and lots of images that I love using 500mm ƒ/4 and 600mm ƒ/4 lenses. I was fortunate to become the grand prize recipient of the Nature’s Best Photography photo contest, with photos displayed at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History in Washington, D.C., and most recently held my first invited solo exhibit.
So what happened in these few years? How did I change from someone who couldn’t aim from the viewfinder to winning awards using a super-telephoto lens? The first telephoto technique to learn is about the lenses themselves.
Price
I have to admit that it took me years to bite the bullet and invest in a 500mm ƒ/4 lens because of its price. Instead, I rented it from lensrentals.com and borrowlenses.com several times to make sure the focal length of the lens was right for what I needed. (Both companies are reliable.) The rental fee is quite expensive, but at least it’s not as expensive as buying the lens. I recommend that you try before you buy—but beware—the cost of multiple rentals does add up. One good thing about investing in a super-telephoto lens is that it retains value well. I purchased my first 500mm ƒ/4 lens for $5,800 and sold it three years later for $5,500.
Weight
The second thing that turns most people off is the weight of these lenses. Indeed, it’s true that not many people can handhold a super-telephoto lens for an extended period of time. A sturdy tripod and head are essential. I like to use the Gitzo 3542XLS or Really Right Stuff TVC-33 carbon-fiber tripod with the Wimberley WH-200 Head Version II for support. The fluid motion of the Wimberley head enables movement of the lens without the need to carry it. This setup is good for slow-moving wildlife or birds on a perch. When one needs to move around a lot, a monopod such as an Induro monopod paired with the Really Right Stuff MH-01 Pro monopod head (designed for heavy telephotos) is a good combo.
Telephoto Wildlife TipI don’t wear camouflage clothing. I just approach wildlife slowly and observe their behavior closely. If I sense they’re not comfortable, I back down.
When the wildlife action requires a bigger range of lens movement, handholding the lens is necessary. The key to handholding a heavy telephoto lens is to observe and anticipate the flight path of a bird or the moving path of an animal, and lift up the lens only when the moment is right. If you can minimize the time between holding up the lens and when autofocus is acquired, you won’t need to handhold it for an extended period of time. You can rest your lens on your shoulder or even put it on the ground to save your energy. Once action happens, all you need to do is swing the camera with the lens up to your eye, focus and click the shutter. Once the action finishes, you can put the camera down. On a related note, I always use a Don Zeck lens cap to protect the front element of the lens when not in use. I also replace the standard lens foot with an aluminum foot to reduce weight.
Size
With the huge size of a telephoto lens, it’s easier to get scratched when you carry it out in the field. (I always cover it with a LensCoat to protect it.) I “upgraded” from a 500mm ƒ/4 lens that I used for four years to a 600mm ƒ/4, thinking that the extra 100mm would give me an edge. It turned out that I couldn’t even fit the lens with a 1.4x teleconverter mounted to my camera on the passenger seat of my car.
One time while I was driving on a backroad, I saw a bobcat. When I tried to point my newly acquired 600mm lens toward the bobcat, I could barely stick the front element of the lens out the window due to its much bigger diameter. Maneuvering the lens to follow the bobcat was also more difficult. I ended up missing more shots with the 600mm than I did with the 500mm lens, so this is something to consider.
The huge size of these super-telephoto lenses also creates a challenge for commercial air travel. I always put the lens in my Gura Gear Bataflae 32L camera backpack. For some reason, airline personnel tend to ask you to gate-check your bag if it has wheels, so I avoid roller bags for carry-on. I sometimes pack a Kinesis Long Lens Case (L522 or L622) in my check-in bags. These fit my camera, teleconverter and 600mm ƒ/4 all attached, with just the lens hood inverted, so I can quickly take it out without assembling the pieces.
Narrow Field of View
Finding a subject through a super-telephoto lens is like looking through a straw. One needs a lot of practice to quickly find and lock the subject in the viewfinder. For a fast-moving subject, it’s much more difficult. I suggest going to a local park where there are waterfowl to practice tracking them with the lens.
Teleconverters
I almost always have my 1.4x teleconverter on my 600mm ƒ/4 lens, as I don’t see any degradation of image quality. For a 2x teleconverter, traditional belief is that it degrades image quality significantly, but in recent years, I’ve seen in several online forums where professional photographers and enthusiasts posted their reviews of the performance of 2x teleconverters. The results blew me away, especially for Canon teleconverters.
Essentially, to the naked eye, the image quality was excellent when a 2x teleconverter was attached to a prime super-tele. The secret is to “stop down” the aperture. For example, with a 500mm ƒ/4 lens, when attached to a 2x, it becomes 1000mm ƒ/8. If one shoots wide open at ƒ/8, the quality degrades a bit, but once you set the aperture at ƒ/11 or smaller, the image quality is spectacular. This opens up a whole new world, as most wild animals are elusive and like to stay far away from us. In order to capture interaction, a super-close-up perspective always helps tremendously.
Shutter Speed and Image Stabilization
We’ve been taught that, in order to get a sharp photo, the rule of thumb is to have a shutter speed of 1/focal length of the lens. So, for a 600mm lens, one should have a shutter speed of at least 1/600. However, as long as the subject isn’t moving quickly, one can obtain a sharp picture with a lower shutter speed.
The traditional way is to put the camera on a tripod and use a shutter release, but as I mentioned, a tripod slows you down, and often it’s not suitable depending on the terrain, such as on a boat or in tall grass and twigs. We can, instead, use two advantages that technology provides: high frame rates and image stabilization. Nowadays, many lenses offer four stops of stabilization. I’ve produced sharp images with a shutter speed of 1/30 handheld.
Creative Telephoto Technique: Isolation & InteractionIsolation. The narrow field of view of super-telephoto lenses allows us to isolate wildlife and creates soft, surreal backgrounds. Sometimes, less is more in wildlife photography. The ability to remove distraction is a strength of telephoto lenses. When using a super-telephoto, we always should have our eyes open to the way these lenses “see,” meaning we should remain aware of the small portion of background behind the wildlife and understand how the background that’s captured will get compressed, magnified and blurred because of the telephoto effect to create something surreal. Always move around to look for that background. Just a step to your left or right, or crouching down, will create a completely different—and better—background. Interaction. The way super-telephoto lenses isolate the subject from the background allows us to show split-second actions and the intimate interactions with up-close details that aren’t easy to see with the naked eye. Those split-second actions require quickness to focus on the wild animal. In my experience, many of the interesting moments happen within a few seconds from when we see the animals or when we least expect it. The ability not to miss the moment requires us to minimize the time from when we acquire focus to the moment the action happens. Handholding the lens, or using a monopod instead of tripod, sometimes helps. |
Technology has helped advance super-telephoto photography significantly. The weight of many long lenses is more manageable and image stabilization has greatly improved to allow a much slower shutter speed to create sharp images handheld. Also, the high ISO performance of many cameras opens up a whole new world for wildlife photography, as most wildlife and birds are active in early morning and late evening when light is insufficient for lower ISOs. By pushing the limit of the telephoto lens and your camera, you can create artistic images with perspectives unseen by the naked eye!
Tin Man Lee has had a deep love for wildlife since childhood. His dream is to capture emotion through wildlife photography and to awaken empathy among us. See more of his photography at tinmanlee.com.
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