Friday, April 12th, 2013

Talk to the Animals – Photograph at the Zoo – Part 2

Photographing at the zoo offers unique opportunities for getting great animal photos

Zoos are a great place to polish your photography skills and to get photos of animals and birds you may never see otherwise.

However, just because the animals are caged doesn’t mean they are easy to photograph so there is plenty to think about and work around.

The plus is that your perseverance will be rewarded and you can get some truly great photos if you know how. Here are some tips for a successful day photographing at the zoo.

Camera settings

To get in close to the animals, use the longest zoom lens you can handle. The downside of a zooming in close with a big zoom lens is that any movement will be exaggerated so you will need to hold the camera steady to capture the shot in focus.

Using a large aperture like such as f3.8, f4.0 or f4.5 will let more light into the camera so the exposure time can be reduced to help you get sharper images. Also consider increasing the ISO to get a faster shutter speed.

A side benefit of using a large aperture on the lens is that you will get a shallower depth of field around the subject and the background and foreground will be blurred. When you’re shooting at the zoo this is an advantage as it minimizes the impact of cages and man made objects.

Just ensure that the camera focuses accurately on the animal you are photographing because of this short depth of field is a double edge sword – if you’re not focused tight on the subject it will be out of focus.

Shooting in low light

Some displays at the zoo are indoors and to shoot in these low light conditions start by adjusting your camera’s ISO equivalency to a high value such as 800, 1,600 or 3,200.

At these settings the camera is more sensitive to light so you can capture your image without using a flash. Not only is the use of a flash typically not permitted in indoor displays, it is also unlikely to give you good results because, instead of lighting the scene it is more likely to bounce back at the camera or wash out the scene.

Take care to adjust for what lighting there is in indoor displays. Very often the lights throw an orange or green cast over the image.

Adjust the white balance setting on the camera to negate the cast and you won’t have to clean up your photographs later on.

What to capture


When you’re planning what to shoot, look for opportunities such as capturing an animal when it is looking directly at you.

To do this, you will need to be in a good position relative to the animal and you will need to be patient – and lucky.

Another option is to capture the animal where you can see its eyes and when it is doing something interesting like eating or yawning. Again, take your time, be ready with your camera positioned and be patient.

In some circumstances you may find yourself forced to shoot through glass or perspex. Walk around the area to find a good place where there are minimal reflections and where dirt on the window won’t be distracting.

If you’re forced to shoot an animal through a fence, get close to the fence so you can shoot through gaps in it or make the fence an interesting feature.

Even if you’re forced to crop parts of the animal away to get a clear shot you can still end up with a worthwhile image.

Of course, always photograph from a safe distance – some animals are belligerent and dangerous and up close to a fence won’t be safe if they are the other side of it.

If you have the luxury of spending time with animals that are active and in a good position for you to capture them, spend the time you have wisely.

Take your time

Instead of taking a couple of good shots and moving away from the animal, wait around to see what creative opportunities arise that might give you a great shot.

By waiting, you may find the animals interact with each other, playing or fighting or that they arrange themselves in interesting patterns that turn a good photograph into a great one.

When you’re next looking for an opportunity to hone your photography skills it may be time for a visit to your local zoo to take advantage of the wealth of photographic opportunities offered there.

Helen Bradley

Sunday, April 7th, 2013

Talk to the Animals – Photograph at the Zoo – Part 1

Your local zoo is a place to get great animal photos without leaving home

Zoos are a great place to polish your photography skills and to get photos of animals and birds you may never see otherwise.

However, just because the animals are caged doesn’t mean they are easy to photograph so there is plenty to think about and work around.

The plus is that your perseverance will be rewarded and you can get some truly great photos if you know how. Here are some tips for a successful day photographing at the zoo.

Pack the right kit

A digital SLR is a good choice for the zoo because most let you switch to manual focus which will be handy where you are trying to photograph an animal behind foreground foliage.

In this situation, the camera’s autofocus feature will have trouble distinguishing what you actually want to have in focus – being able to focus manually will let you have better control of what you shoot than using a point and shoot camera.

At the zoo you’ll be shooting at a reasonable distance away from most animals so a good zoom lens will get you close to the animals to fill the frame. A 28–200mm lens is a good choice as it offers a good zoom and is still easy to hand hold. A 70-300mm lens will get you in closer still but you have to be careful to hold it very still.

Also consider the issue of glare – you may not have a lot of choice about where you photograph so a polarizing filter may help you cut glare and get more saturated colours on a bright day.

When to go

Choosing the right time of the day can help you get better photographs. Photographing early in the morning or late in the afternoon when the light is softer and the shadows less harsh is always better than shooting at midday.

When you arrive at the zoo ask about feeding times, animal shows and anything that will get you close to the animals and preferably without cages between you and them.

To this end I’ve attended the free flight Bird Show at Taronga Park Zoo in Sydney and I’ve paid to breakfast with Orangutan in Singapore. I’ve also paid to photograph koalas up close at Taronga Park Zoo – instead of having my photo taken with them – I paid to do the photography. In Stockholm I paid to get inside an enclosure with some very curious Lemurs and I’ve done safari photo tours at Safari West in California. In short, any time you can get close to birds and wild animals unencumbered by cages do so. You’ll find these situations typically less encumbered by other people taking happy snaps and you’ll have more space and time to shoot.

Elsewhere around the zoo if you can visit the animals at their feeding time you that will bring animals out of hiding into places where it’s easier to see and to photograph them.

You do, however, still need to be well prepared and well positioned to get the best photos.

Helen Bradley

Friday, January 8th, 2010

Better photos Tip #3 – get down low

The best photos of animals and kids happen when you get down to their level.

When you are photographing children and animals, get down to their level so you shoot from the side and not the top of their head.

This may require you to sit on the floor or to put the animal or the child on a table or bench.

If you are capturing animals that move a lot it can be helpful if you have a handler to hold the animal while you take the photograph.

A good time to photograph the family cat is when they are basking in the sun or asleep.

Helen Bradley