The Wild Art of Wildlife Photography

It might seem like a challenging discipline to get into, but anyone can get started with wildlife photography, as long as you’ve got a camera, and access to animals and insects. 

You could even start out by taking your cellphone on a well-timed stroll around the natural world of your neighborhood; many are well-equipped to photograph wildlife in the right conditions—and there’s wildlife all around if you know when and where to go. 

What Is Wildlife Photography?

If you combine nature photography with an animal element, you’re picking up another discipline called wildlife photography. These photos are often shot in nature, but the subject is the animal instead of its environment.

This type of photography aims to discover wildlife in their natural habitat and showcase the varying behaviors, characteristics and interactions of different species. 

Wildlife Photography Equipment 

While you might be able to use your cell to capture portraits of your favorite animals, you’ll need a DSLR, a few lenses and perhaps some tutorials if you want to take wildlife photography seriously.

What Type Of Camera Do You Need For Wildlife Photography?

The best wildlife photography camera is the one you can afford. Splashing out heaps of money on the most expensive camera won’t guarantee that you take the best photo; working on your skills is much more important.

If you’re shopping for your first wildlife photography camera, try to find one that has glowing reviews for low-light images, includes a good, quick autofocus with many coverage points, and has a high burst rate. 

Budding professional nature photographers will need very high-resolution images to sell their photos, so if you’re considering this, make sure your camera is capable of taking photos that meet the requirements of the main stock agencies.

What Lenses Do You Need For Wildlife Photography?

The lenses are the thing that will cost a fair bit of money at first. Prime lenses tend to be more affordable because they’re fixed at one focal length, while zoom lenses typically cost more because they let you change the focal length. 

As a beginner, you could invest in one really good zoom lens that will take you from a wide angle (35mm or shorter) to a standard angle (35-85mm) to a telephoto angle (85mm and longer) in one. If you have to choose one, go for a telephoto lens with the longest focal length you can afford because it’ll allow you to zoom in on the animal without disturbing them or risking your safety.

Essential Gear For Wildlife Photography

Since you’ll probably be using a heavy telephoto lens for your wildlife photography, it’s really important you get a tripod to hold it steady. This becomes even more essential if you’re using a slower shutter speed or photographing during low light. 

Some other accessories that are helpful for shooting on location include:

• A set of binoculars to look for subjects or locations. 
• A rain cover that protects the camera, lens and tripod to prevent water damage when you’re in the field.
• A UV filter to save your images from being over-exposed in bright sunlight.
• A teleconverter, which sits between the lens and camera, increases the magnification between 1.4x and 2x.
• A spare battery, or a battery grip that holds more than one, to save you on the occasions when your power is dwindling but you’ve still got more shooting time.
• A spare memory card, so you never have to worry about running out of storage space.
• A rugged camera bag so you can carry everything, including your lenses and accessories, to your chosen photography spot. 

Camera Settings For Spectacular Wildlife Photos

No matter what type of camera you end up with, there are a few tricks the pros use to get really great shots of wild animals:

• Use single-focus mode if the wildlife is stationary, but switch to continuous-focus mode if you’re photographing a moving animal such as birds in flight. The latter setting will try to follow the subject as you track it. 
• Don’t forget to use spot metering to check the exposure on the eyes.
• Shoot in aperture priority mode. This will adjust the shutter speed automatically so you can always be ready to shoot. 
• Be really selective about when you use burst mode. It’s noisy, so it can startle your subject—but it’ll be essential if you’re trying to capture a fast-action moment.

Helpful Settings For Mobile Wildlife Photography

A few tweaks to how you use the camera on your cell can transform your mobile wildlife photography:

• Turn on the High Dynamic Range setting. It’ll take multiple photos at once and merge them so you can see more detail in the highlights and shadows.
• Take care with the time of day you’re shooting, and avoid photographing wildlife in low light, as you may end up with grainy photos or images that are simply too underexposed. 
• Move closer to the animal, if it’s safe to do so. Most cell phones can’t zoom in on a subject without compromising on quality. 
• For sharp photos, consider using a tripod or something to keep your mobile steady.
• Make sure your phone saves images in their raw format and doesn’t compress them. This is essential if you want to edit them later. 

Wildlife Photography Ideas

There’s a whole range of sub-genres within wildlife photography. The kinds of photos that you can take will be dictated by your access to the subject, and the gear that you have—but most of these wildlife shots could be practiced in your backyard or at your local park. 

Expressive Animal Portraits

A really popular idea for wildlife photography is to take a portrait of the animal in its habitat. The most captivating animal portraits usually focus on the animal’s face and catch them either in action or when they happen to look at the camera. 

You could practice capturing portraits of animals anywhere you find wildlife, whether that’s a raccoon foraging in the city, bats flying between trees, or butterflies fluttering amongst the flowers. 

Soaring Bird Photography

There’s no doubt about it, bird photography is perhaps the most challenging type of image to shoot, especially when they’re in flight. If your shutter speed is too slow, or the focus isn’t totally sharp, you’ll end up with a blur of wings and colors. But get it right, and the results can be phenomenal. 

If you’ve got a backyard, you could install a bird feeder or bath and set up your camera with a telephoto lens to photograph them from a distance. You could also research where the flocks like to roost nearby and practice your bird photography there. 

Detailed Macro Wildlife Photography

Most people will never get close enough to wildlife to see their minute details, but you’ll be able to show them with macro photography. Whether you’re zooming in to find the patterns of a snake’s scales, the hairs on a spider’s legs, or the eyes of a tiny insect, a perfectly crisp macro photo can have a huge impact on its viewer. 

You should be able to find insects everywhere, which makes them the ideal subject for practicing your macro wildlife photography. Just remember to stay a safe distance from the wildlife if you can’t zoom in too far. 

Wildlife Photography Tips

As the field guides to wildlife photography will tell you, the best way to improve is to keep practicing. Perhaps you could pop a more compact camera in your pocket when you go for a walk and see what you can capture?

If you’re looking to really refine your wildlife photography, the following tips may help:

• Get to know the wildlife that you’re photographing: research them enough to be able to anticipate their behavior and predict where they’ll be. Spend time in the environment observing where they go and what they do. 
• Think about the lighting and how to enjoy its benefits. Golden hour photography is perfect because the camera will be able to capture most of the detail in your frame, but images taken in the harsh midday sun will have a high contrast, less detail and include strong shadows. 
• If you simply can’t avoid taking photos in the middle of the day, head for the shade instead or go out on an overcast day to soften the rays. 
• Focus your photo on the wildlife’s eyes and press the shutter button when they catch the light. This will make them look even more expressive and draw the viewer to its face. If you have the patience, waiting for them to look in the direction of your camera can produce a rewarding and high-impact image. 
• Get eye-level with the subject, if you can. This helps viewers will feel like they’re in the field with you.
• Consider the angle of the subject’s head. If the wildlife has eyes on each side of its head, like a bird, then shooting at a 45-degree angle will work well. If they have eyes at the front of their head, like a monkey, you’ll be able to shoot if they’re looking right at you.
• Set your camera up before you arrive. Being ready to shoot immediately means you won’t miss out on any unexpected moments as your heading toward your location. 
• Don’t get so wrapped up in the wildlife that you forget about the background. You may need to remove distracting elements during the editing process, but it’s possible to reduce this by zooming in and using as low an f-number as possible. 

Sell Your Wildlife Photos And Grow Your Gear

If wildlife photography grabs you by the horns, it’s totally possible to turn your photography hobby into a side hustle. If you end up with photos of rare and unusual wildlife, or shoot at very distinct locations or landscapes, you may be able to sell these to stock photography agencies. As your skills improve and your portfolio strengthens, your chances of selling and making money from your wildlife photography will also grow, as will your pile of gear.

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