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nature photography tips and tutorials

Wildlife

When photographing wildlife, always keep an eye on the Sun

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Photo by Steve Berardi
Photo by Steve Berardi
There’s a big problem with the photo above, of a female Rufous Hummingbird. Can you spot what it is?

Okay, maybe the headline gave it away, but in case you haven’t figured it out yet, the problem is that big dark shadow on the bird’s breast.

Why did this happen? Simple: I wasn’t keeping an eye on the Sun. I don’t mean that literally, of course. If you really kept an eye on the Sun, you’d go blind pretty quickly (not a good condition for photographers!).

But, when you’re photographing wildlife, it’s a good idea to keep track of the Sun’s position, to avoid harsh shadows from appearing on your subject. You’ll most likely want an evenly lit subject, unless you’re exploring a creative type of photo. [Read more…] about When photographing wildlife, always keep an eye on the Sun

How to get a perfect exposure of an albino Red-tailed Hawk in flight

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Photo by Vic Berardi
Photo by Vic Berardi
This photo of a nearly all white albino Red-tailed Hawk (Buteo jamaicensis) was taken in northern Illinois this past weekend, at midday.

This plumage variation of Red-tailed Hawks, although not necessarily rare in
occurrence, is somewhat rare in opportunities to photograph. When I first saw the bird, it was perched in a tree directly above me. The lighting was perfect as you can see in this photo below: [Read more…] about How to get a perfect exposure of an albino Red-tailed Hawk in flight

Why you should always take lots and lots of photos (regardless of subject)

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Photo by Cliff Hutson (used under the CC-Attr-2.0 license)
Photo by Cliff Hutson (used under the CC-Attr-2.0 license)

When you decide to photograph a particular subject, how many shots do you usually take? Do you just hit the shutter once and move on? Or, do you take a lot of shots, and perhaps change your camera settings in the process?

Well, regardless of what your subject is, you should always take lots and lots of photos. This may not seem obvious for all subjects, so here’s a breakdown:
[Read more…] about Why you should always take lots and lots of photos (regardless of subject)

Tips for photographing shorebirds

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Photo by Matthew Fletcher
Photo by Matthew Fletcher

Shorebirds can be both very rewarding and very challenging to photograph. To start with, their environment is often muddy, sandy, salty, or a combination of all three. Add to that, shorebirds are usually very timid and you rarely have much cover to hide behind, making for a very challenging subject.

But when you get home tired, with wet clothes and sand in your shoes, with a big cheesy grin on your face because you know you just got some great shots, you know it was all worthwhile.

Now, let’s take a look at some of the key aspects of taking photographs of shorebirds… [Read more…] about Tips for photographing shorebirds

The unbaited Northern Hawk Owl

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Photo by Mike McDowell
Photo by Mike McDowell

In a previous article, Vic Berardi discussed the ethics of baiting owls in order to get a good photograph. He explained how it’s important to keep nature natural, and how it’s possible to get great photos without baiting wild animals. It just takes patience, and knowledge.

Well, the photo above by Mike McDowell is proof that you can get a stunning photograph of a Northern Hawk Owl without baiting them. Mike also wrote an article on the subject, which is worth checking out!

How snow can help you get better bird photos

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Photo by Vic Berardi
Photo by Vic Berardi

Photography is all about light and the use of it. Photographing birds in winter brings a special kind of lighting not available during the rest of the year–reflective snow cover. Fresh fallen snow and bright sunlight offer both spectacular results as well as tricky exposure decisions.

Bird photography presents many challenges with the various plumages that are exhibited. Some birds are very pale underneath and some are very dark, creating exposure difficulties for the photographer. Do you expose for the sky but leave the undersides of the bird either overexposed or underexposed? The result of these decisions is many times a poorly exposed photograph. The front lighting that reflective snow cover brings can alleviate some of these decisions. [Read more…] about How snow can help you get better bird photos