PhotoNaturalist - nature photography tips and tutorials
nature photography tips and tutorials
Do you ever wish you could add something to your nature photos that would just magically make them all super awesome and fantastic?
Well, guess what? You can!
That secret ingredient is patience. [Read more…] about The Secret Ingredient to Good Nature Photos
Bird photography can be frustrating at times, and it may seem like you always need a longer lens, but with a little patience and a few little tricks, you’ll be coming home with good bird photos in no time. So, here are a few tips to get you started: [Read more…] about 9 Tips For Photographing Perched Birds
Sometimes autofocus can be really annoying: it’ll search and search for an object to focus on, and either never find it, or go through multiple cycles until it finally finds the right object to focus on. And by that time, you may have already missed the shot–especially if you’re photographing a quick moving subject like birds.
In previous posts, I’ve talked about a few ways you can get better control of your autofocus. But, there’s also a little switch on your lens that can help it focus faster. [Read more…] about Quick Tip for Getting a Faster Autofocus
The photo above is a good example. The dragonfly is pretty bright, but the background is much darker. This strong contrast of brightness helps emphasize the edges, making the outline of the dragonfly appear much sharper.
This is actually how most sharpening algorithms work in post-processing software: by increasing the contrast of brightness between edges it makes those edges stand out more and appear sharper. That’s why oversharpened images have those ugly halos. [Read more…] about Quick Tip for Getting Sharper Closeup Photos
Today, I’m happy to announce that my new eBook, Examples, is now available. It’s a collection of 23 of my images and the stories of how those images were made.
The idea was inspired by my firm belief that the best way to learn something is by example. As Albert Einstein put it, “Learning by example isn’t the best way to learn. It’s the only way to learn.”
I remember countless times back in school when I was struggling to understand something, but as soon as the teacher gave us an example or stepped through a problem detail by detail, I finally began to understand.
Examples help us pull concepts together and see how those concepts apply to actual problems. And, that’s my goal for this eBook. Throughout the book, you’ll find a number of links to blog posts I’ve written, or other helpful websites I’ve found that explain a concept I used to create an image. [Read more…] about Learn by Example in my new eBook!
The last time I went hiking on one of my favorite trails here in Southern California, I missed out on a really good photo opportunity. As I was driving out of the national forest at the end of the day, I spotted a Red-Tailed hawk perched in a nearby tree. The tree must’ve been just 30 feet or so away from my car.
So, I pulled over, and realized I had a problem: my camera and telephoto lens was in the trunk. That meant I’d have to get out of my car, open the trunk, get the camera, and finally try to fire off a few shots. Doing all that without scaring the hawk away would’ve been a miracle. I tried anyway, and sure enough, as soon as I got out of the car, the hawk took off. Oh well.
Although the hawks here in California usually don’t mind if I just roll down the window and fire off a few shots, they DO mind if I actually get out of the vehicle.
Looking back at that situation, I realize there’s a couple things I could’ve done. [Read more…] about Where to Keep Your Telephoto Lens