Wildlife Photography_ From Snapshots to Great Shots - Laurie Excell [54]
Backyard Birds: Observe
Every chance you get, observe the activity that your attractions have created. Try to make note of what times of day are the most active. Where do the birds land before they make the final flight to the food or water? What is the background like? Are there some natural, photogenic perches that the birds land on? What can you do to make the area more photogenic?
Backyard Birds: Blind Photography
Set up a blind near the water/food source. The blind can be a hedge or other type of bush that blocks you (mostly) from the birds’ view and allows you to capture their comings and goings. The blind can be anything from a pup tent to an official camo blind used for hunting or bird watching; it just needs to block you from the birds’ view. Leave it up for a few days to let the birds get used to it. Next, gather up your longest lens, your tripod, a comfortable chair, and all the necessary things you will need for a few hours. Then hang out to see what comes to your feeder or bird bath.
Share your results with the book’s Flickr group!
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Index
3D Matrix metering, 45
100% viewfinder, 8
A
action
blurring, 44, 70, 71, 186–191, 193
stopping, 44, 70, 176, 185–186, 193 See also motion
Adobe RGB color space, 51
AF-S lenses, 12
Alaska wildlife
coastal brown bear photo shoot, 195–215
summer photography, 122–124, 125
American Kestral, 144
American Oystercatcher, 100, 101, 102
American Wigeon, 113
Amur Leopard, 114, 115
angles for taking photos, 215
Aperture Priority mode, 42–44, 66, 180
aperture settings
depth of field and, 42, 43, 66, 68
exposure and, 66–69
shutter speed and, 68, 69
teleconverters and, 17
approaching subjects, 148–150, 151
Attenborough, Sir David, 86
B
background composition, 167–168
backlighting, 77, 78, 79
backpacks, 24–25
backyard photography, 112, 132, 225
bald eagles, 45, 50, 111
ballheads, 21, 22
bears
coastal brown bear, 123, 126, 195–215
cub in tree photo, 180
fishing photo, 176–177
grizzly bear, 76, 79, 170
polar bear, 129, 145, 161
waterfall photo, 71, 187
behavior, capturing, 100–102
Better Beamer flash extender, 17, 18
Bighorn sheep, 73, 78, 127, 128, 150, 168
bird photo shoot (South Texas), 217–225
annotated image from, 218–219
assignments related to, 225
blinds used for, 222, 223
clothing required for, 220–221
equipment chosen for, 220
seasonal considerations for, 221–222
birds
backyard photos of, 112, 132, 225
blinds used for, 142–143, 144, 222, 223
seasonal considerations, 120, 122, 221–222
sources for researching, 86, 87 See also specific species
bison, 74, 118, 138–139, 165, 166, 167
bit depth, 42
Black Skimmers, 69
Black-capped Chickadee, 112
Black-legged Kittiwakes, 13, 58–59, 178
blinds, 120, 121, 142–147
assignment on, 151
bird photos using, 222, 223, 225
boats as, 146–147
cars as, 143–144
established, 142–143
Tundra Buggy, 145
Blue Grosbeak, 62
Blue Grouse, 192
blur pans, 27, 29, 186–191, 193
blurring motion
panning for, 27, 29, 186–191, 193
shutter speed for, 44, 70, 71, 187, 190–191
boats, as blinds, 146–147
book resources, 86
Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge, 116, 130
brown bear. See coastal brown bear
budget. See cost considerations
buffer, camera, 46
bull elk, 80, 127
C
camera settings, 40–52
Aperture Priority mode, 42–44
assignment on using, 55
color space options, 51
continuous advance, 46–47
continuous focus, 46
examples of using, 36–39
File number sequence, 52
Highlight warning, 48–49
ISO setting, 49–50
Matrix metering, 45
RAW vs. JPEG formats, 40–42
cameras, 6–9
cleaning kits for, 31–32
features to consider in, 6, 8–9
full-frame vs. cropped sensor, 6–8
handholding technique, 52–53
wildlife photography setups, 2–3
Canon wildlife setups, 2–3
capturing behavior, 100–102