Tips For Better Wild Bird Pictures
Photographing great wild bird pictures can be challenging at times, but with a little preparation, the right equipment and a few simple techniques, it can also be quite fun and rewarding. What follows are our top 7 tips for capturing better wild bird pictures.
Know Your Venue
If you are looking to capture some great wild bird pictures, the first thing you have to do is begin to know your location. First up, do some research and discover what species you're likely to see. From there you can work out where and when you will find them
If you can find a map of some description, convert that to a sketch map so that you can mark your own details on it. Then when you first arrive, mark out the overhead trail of the sun so you can expect lighting conditions in different locations, mark in different foliage/habitat types, and where you will find good cover for yourself.
Then as you spot different species, mark the locations (and times) in as well and you will soon have a very handy reference guide for future shoots. When you return you will know where you have to be and what time of day you need to be there, to capture the bird footage you seek.
Most of the best bird photographers I know let me know they rarely get their best shots on the first visit the best wild bird pictures often happen when they know the location as well as their own back garden.
Know Your Subject
This should go without say for any form of wildlife photography, but it's especially important for capturing great bird footage. Birds are surprisingly fast and frequently seem completely unpredictable, so that the better you start to know them, the better your odds of anticipating their behaviour and getting the shot you need.
For starters, invest in a good bird guide and learn everything you can about the species you wish to image. Getting familiar with their feeding habits, breeding, nesting and migratory behaviours will assist you in making sure you are in the right spot at the appropriate time.
Understanding of their particular behaviour, from guides and observation, will help you expect what they are going to do once you have found them. The more time you spend observing the birds, the better you'll be able to envision their behavior, and it'll give them more time to become used to you.
There are some behaviours that are fairly universal though, so you can start with these.
Most birds will take off and land into the wind, so if there's a prevailing wind direction at your venue, be aware of it and position yourself facing towards the birds likely location with the sun behind you ie. So you get your stills with the bird flying toward you, lit from the front.
Most birds also 'tense ' their feathers just before they take off. When they're relaxed (and going no where) they will look more 'fluffy'. When they are about to take flight, they nearly appear to shrink for a second or two before launching themselves. If you watch for this, it could be a great trigger to start shooting.
Buy the Longest Fastest Lens You Can Afford
This one includes a caveat you do not need an exorbitantly dear lens to get sellable bird pictures but any extra length you are able to afford will help.
Some of the best bird photographers I know will use nothing more than a standard 100mm-400mm telephoto and they get superb results. Actually most will tell you it's more on the preparation &research, good positioning and using patient stalking systems.
So in an ideal world, all bird photographers would have a 600mm f4 car focus lens, but realistically, anything over 300mm is maybe ok if you hone your other birding abilities.
You tin of course use a teleconvertor a 1.4 teleconvertor on a 400mm lens will put you in the 600mm range, but be aware you'll lose a couple of stops in the process. In open well lit settings that may be OK, but in any kind of scrub it's probably going to make life tough.
A final option lots of dedicated birders use 'digiscoping ' ... Attaching their camera to their spotting scope. A spotting scope with 25x magnification would be equal to a 1500mm lens, so even if you buy the adaptor too , it can be a terribly cost-effective method of getting close to your subjects.
Camera Settings
Mostly, you'll want to use the quickest possible settings to deal with the velocity and mobility of your subjects, and also with the long lens you will be using. When the birds are flying, you may customarily need at least a 1/500 second shutter speed to keep it crisp. Even when they are perched, many birds are fidgets and barely keep perfectly still.
There'll be. Instances when you want to slow it down and convey the motion and this is done purposely. Just remember there is a difference between a photograph purposely caught to convey movement, and one that's just not sharp. If you're going for 'movement ' my idea will be to use panning to be certain there's no longer any question in the viewer's mind that it's deliberate!
Digital ISO settings permit you to speed things up significantly, just be aware of how snappy you can go before the picture definition suffers.
Never forget to constantly test your exposures. White, bright skies will trick your camera's auto-exposure so for in flight shots you'll typically need to dial in 1-2 stops or even more exposure compensation.
Other Equipment
Typically a tripod would be considered essential kit when using a long lens, but often the scenarios you find yourself setting up in might make it troublesome. By every means use one when you can, particularly if you're working from a hide or semi-permanent position, but if you're on the move, I mostly find a monopod a lot more handy. In wooded areas there's generally a tree to brace myself on,
A lot of bird photographers will tell you their car makes a great hide and tripod all in one. Many birds are rather used to autos by this time, so if you arrive on site and sit silently for 1 or 2 minutes, many birds will soon forget the auto is there. Keep a small bean bag convenient for a camera rest and your in business.
Always carry additional battery power and additional storage, and in the field a few plastic bags help for shielding your gear from the elements. If you're really roughing it, lots of pros will suggest you don't even change lenses if they actually need a selection of lens, they'll carry it already attached to an extra camera body, simply to avoid any chance of getting dust or water within.
Compositions
There are 1 or 2 basic rules that apply to most wildlife photography, and they're especially relevant to bird photographers too.
- First and foremost is to focus on the eyes.
- If the eyes are sharp, the rest doesn't matter.
- And if the eyes aren't sharp, the rest doesn't matter!
No doubt there'll be exceptions, but if you keep that decisively in mind when you're shooting and also when your revising, you will end up with a much stronger collection.
Another 'rule ' that is applicable to most wildlife photography is, shoot from the front. With few exceptions, there's rarely much call for a rear-end view of any creature.
The head-on view is far more natural, and generally your viewers will find it easier to connect with. With bird it's rather more crucial as you often find front on is the view they present to their mates, while the rear view is more likely to be plain or maybe camouflaged.
Finally, as much as you can, shoot from eye height. For ground or shore birds, this means getting down on your belly. For high nesting birds it means getting as high as you can yourself. Obviously you cannot always get to their level, but the more you try, the better your results will be. Telephoto lenses do help give the impression you're more equal but don't rely on that alone.
If you're someone who photographs birds in flight you want to predict and pan, and be extra careful not to crop too tightly. Better to trim things later than find you repeatedly clipped off a tail or a wing. Always try and capture the birds flying into the frame, rather than out of it.
Always watch the wing position of the species you are photographing and also refer to your bird guide. Different species will present extremely distinct shapes, and the ability to capture those behaviours and marks that make a creature unique is what splits the great wildlife photographers.
Make sure you get good clear detail shots as well so that you can be completely assured in your identification of the bird. That means close up shots of the head & beak, breast and back, as well as wing and tail shapes. (If you are planning to sell the photographs, ever, correct identification is important, so don't ever rely totally on common-names consumers will sometimes desire scientific names solely to be 100 percent sure).
Patience & Practice
When you arrive on site, always give the local inhabitants time to become used to you being there, you will get better pictures. Don't try to force the issue be going too close to fast at best they will just fly away, at worst they will look manifestly stressed which never makes a good photograph anyway.
Instead , wait and watch and work out what the comfortable zone is for the species, and stay just outside that. Most birds are instinctively afraid of folks, but if you sit and wait silently, you'll also find most are quite curious and plenty will essentially come up to you if you give them the opportunity.
Beyond that, shoot. Regularly and shoot heaps. Do not expect your best shots on your first trip to an area, instead treat is as a scouting trip. Work out your lines of light, wind and where your cover is, and identify as many species as you can that you can research more absolutely before your next outing.
If you are only starting out in bird photography,you might even find it useful to set up a feeder at your house, so you can practice and observe the birds in relatively closed environment. Remember, the more time you spend getting to know your subjects, the better your photos are going got be.
Ultimately, spend masses of time studying other folk's wild bird photographs. Dissect each shot and think about how it was created in provisions of gear, settings, timing, positioning and the photographer's understanding of the bird and it's behavior.
The great wild bird photos don't occur accidentally. In reality pretty frequently you will find the best bird photographs aren't shot by a bird photographer but rather by an obsessed birder who also photographs birds. Something to keep in mind!
Know Your Venue
If you are looking to capture some great wild bird pictures, the first thing you have to do is begin to know your location. First up, do some research and discover what species you're likely to see. From there you can work out where and when you will find them
If you can find a map of some description, convert that to a sketch map so that you can mark your own details on it. Then when you first arrive, mark out the overhead trail of the sun so you can expect lighting conditions in different locations, mark in different foliage/habitat types, and where you will find good cover for yourself.
Then as you spot different species, mark the locations (and times) in as well and you will soon have a very handy reference guide for future shoots. When you return you will know where you have to be and what time of day you need to be there, to capture the bird footage you seek.
Most of the best bird photographers I know let me know they rarely get their best shots on the first visit the best wild bird pictures often happen when they know the location as well as their own back garden.
Know Your Subject
This should go without say for any form of wildlife photography, but it's especially important for capturing great bird footage. Birds are surprisingly fast and frequently seem completely unpredictable, so that the better you start to know them, the better your odds of anticipating their behaviour and getting the shot you need.
For starters, invest in a good bird guide and learn everything you can about the species you wish to image. Getting familiar with their feeding habits, breeding, nesting and migratory behaviours will assist you in making sure you are in the right spot at the appropriate time.
Understanding of their particular behaviour, from guides and observation, will help you expect what they are going to do once you have found them. The more time you spend observing the birds, the better you'll be able to envision their behavior, and it'll give them more time to become used to you.
There are some behaviours that are fairly universal though, so you can start with these.
Most birds will take off and land into the wind, so if there's a prevailing wind direction at your venue, be aware of it and position yourself facing towards the birds likely location with the sun behind you ie. So you get your stills with the bird flying toward you, lit from the front.
Most birds also 'tense ' their feathers just before they take off. When they're relaxed (and going no where) they will look more 'fluffy'. When they are about to take flight, they nearly appear to shrink for a second or two before launching themselves. If you watch for this, it could be a great trigger to start shooting.
Buy the Longest Fastest Lens You Can Afford
This one includes a caveat you do not need an exorbitantly dear lens to get sellable bird pictures but any extra length you are able to afford will help.
Some of the best bird photographers I know will use nothing more than a standard 100mm-400mm telephoto and they get superb results. Actually most will tell you it's more on the preparation &research, good positioning and using patient stalking systems.
So in an ideal world, all bird photographers would have a 600mm f4 car focus lens, but realistically, anything over 300mm is maybe ok if you hone your other birding abilities.
You tin of course use a teleconvertor a 1.4 teleconvertor on a 400mm lens will put you in the 600mm range, but be aware you'll lose a couple of stops in the process. In open well lit settings that may be OK, but in any kind of scrub it's probably going to make life tough.
A final option lots of dedicated birders use 'digiscoping ' ... Attaching their camera to their spotting scope. A spotting scope with 25x magnification would be equal to a 1500mm lens, so even if you buy the adaptor too , it can be a terribly cost-effective method of getting close to your subjects.
Camera Settings
Mostly, you'll want to use the quickest possible settings to deal with the velocity and mobility of your subjects, and also with the long lens you will be using. When the birds are flying, you may customarily need at least a 1/500 second shutter speed to keep it crisp. Even when they are perched, many birds are fidgets and barely keep perfectly still.
There'll be. Instances when you want to slow it down and convey the motion and this is done purposely. Just remember there is a difference between a photograph purposely caught to convey movement, and one that's just not sharp. If you're going for 'movement ' my idea will be to use panning to be certain there's no longer any question in the viewer's mind that it's deliberate!
Digital ISO settings permit you to speed things up significantly, just be aware of how snappy you can go before the picture definition suffers.
Never forget to constantly test your exposures. White, bright skies will trick your camera's auto-exposure so for in flight shots you'll typically need to dial in 1-2 stops or even more exposure compensation.
Other Equipment
Typically a tripod would be considered essential kit when using a long lens, but often the scenarios you find yourself setting up in might make it troublesome. By every means use one when you can, particularly if you're working from a hide or semi-permanent position, but if you're on the move, I mostly find a monopod a lot more handy. In wooded areas there's generally a tree to brace myself on,
A lot of bird photographers will tell you their car makes a great hide and tripod all in one. Many birds are rather used to autos by this time, so if you arrive on site and sit silently for 1 or 2 minutes, many birds will soon forget the auto is there. Keep a small bean bag convenient for a camera rest and your in business.
Always carry additional battery power and additional storage, and in the field a few plastic bags help for shielding your gear from the elements. If you're really roughing it, lots of pros will suggest you don't even change lenses if they actually need a selection of lens, they'll carry it already attached to an extra camera body, simply to avoid any chance of getting dust or water within.
Compositions
There are 1 or 2 basic rules that apply to most wildlife photography, and they're especially relevant to bird photographers too.
- First and foremost is to focus on the eyes.
- If the eyes are sharp, the rest doesn't matter.
- And if the eyes aren't sharp, the rest doesn't matter!
No doubt there'll be exceptions, but if you keep that decisively in mind when you're shooting and also when your revising, you will end up with a much stronger collection.
Another 'rule ' that is applicable to most wildlife photography is, shoot from the front. With few exceptions, there's rarely much call for a rear-end view of any creature.
The head-on view is far more natural, and generally your viewers will find it easier to connect with. With bird it's rather more crucial as you often find front on is the view they present to their mates, while the rear view is more likely to be plain or maybe camouflaged.
Finally, as much as you can, shoot from eye height. For ground or shore birds, this means getting down on your belly. For high nesting birds it means getting as high as you can yourself. Obviously you cannot always get to their level, but the more you try, the better your results will be. Telephoto lenses do help give the impression you're more equal but don't rely on that alone.
If you're someone who photographs birds in flight you want to predict and pan, and be extra careful not to crop too tightly. Better to trim things later than find you repeatedly clipped off a tail or a wing. Always try and capture the birds flying into the frame, rather than out of it.
Always watch the wing position of the species you are photographing and also refer to your bird guide. Different species will present extremely distinct shapes, and the ability to capture those behaviours and marks that make a creature unique is what splits the great wildlife photographers.
Make sure you get good clear detail shots as well so that you can be completely assured in your identification of the bird. That means close up shots of the head & beak, breast and back, as well as wing and tail shapes. (If you are planning to sell the photographs, ever, correct identification is important, so don't ever rely totally on common-names consumers will sometimes desire scientific names solely to be 100 percent sure).
Patience & Practice
When you arrive on site, always give the local inhabitants time to become used to you being there, you will get better pictures. Don't try to force the issue be going too close to fast at best they will just fly away, at worst they will look manifestly stressed which never makes a good photograph anyway.
Instead , wait and watch and work out what the comfortable zone is for the species, and stay just outside that. Most birds are instinctively afraid of folks, but if you sit and wait silently, you'll also find most are quite curious and plenty will essentially come up to you if you give them the opportunity.
Beyond that, shoot. Regularly and shoot heaps. Do not expect your best shots on your first trip to an area, instead treat is as a scouting trip. Work out your lines of light, wind and where your cover is, and identify as many species as you can that you can research more absolutely before your next outing.
If you are only starting out in bird photography,you might even find it useful to set up a feeder at your house, so you can practice and observe the birds in relatively closed environment. Remember, the more time you spend getting to know your subjects, the better your photos are going got be.
Ultimately, spend masses of time studying other folk's wild bird photographs. Dissect each shot and think about how it was created in provisions of gear, settings, timing, positioning and the photographer's understanding of the bird and it's behavior.
The great wild bird photos don't occur accidentally. In reality pretty frequently you will find the best bird photographs aren't shot by a bird photographer but rather by an obsessed birder who also photographs birds. Something to keep in mind!
About the Author:
Matt Brading photographs birds from Far Noth Queensland through to Anarctica, and is a contributor to GlobalEye Photo Stock Agency, which represents many other bird photographers. You can view their best wild bird pictures here.
Talented photographers can find out more about selling photographs online with GlobalEye and download a free stock photography business kit on the website.
Talented photographers can find out more about selling photographs online with GlobalEye and download a free stock photography business kit on the website.
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