Animal photography - the best tips
Whether guinea pigs, birds, cats or dogs - today almost every household has at least one animal family member. So who is surprised that animal photography in particular has crept into the heart of almost every hobby photographer?
But even if you don't own an animal, you don't have to give up photographing animals. Forest, meadow and animal parks offer great opportunities to do wildlife photography. But what should you actually look out for when photographing animals? We'll tell you in the following article.
The eye in focus
If you are involved in animal photography, you will have noticed that the eyes can say a lot about the state of mind. For this reason, you should make sure that the eye is always sharp when photographing animals. Because this is also the point that is first targeted by the viewer of the photo.
Do not cut off limbs
It is not only when photographing people that you should avoid cutting off limbs. You should also refrain from doing so when photographing animals. The exception here is, of course, portrait photography. In this case, the head with the chest area may be cut off from the rest of the body. In all other cases, however, the animal should be shown in its entirety. Another important point in animal photography is that you give the animal enough space to look.
Choose an unconventional point of view
Especially when it comes to animal photography, there is always a certain traditional angle from which the animals are shown. If you want to make your shots of animals more interesting, then you should try breaking with these traditional angles. For example, you could photograph a hamster at eye level or a bird from above. You are sure to get the viewer's attention.
Mastering the camera
If you photograph people, you can plan the shots, at least to a large extent. Animals are unpredictable, both in a positive and negative sense. Especially when it comes to the special field of wildlife photography, it is essential that you are well prepared for all situations. Because only when you really know your camera and can make the settings without having to give it much thought can you react accordingly spontaneously and achieve great shots that deserve a place in every picture frame.
Exercise patience and a sufficiently large memory card
Without patience and enough memory, animal photography simply doesn't work. Because most animals cannot simply be directed the way you would like them to be. For this reason, a great deal of patience is indispensable. Because often you have no choice but to simply wait for the perfect moment. Just as important as patience in wildlife photography is the use of a good memory card. With it, you can take lots of pictures and then choose the perfect one afterwards.
Do not disregard traditional photographic concepts
Although we encouraged you earlier in the article to use unconventional angles when photographing animals, there are also traditional conceptual rules that should not be ignored here. These rules include the golden ratio as well as the rule of thirds.
We hope that our tips on the subject of animal photography were helpful for you, so that you too can soon put even more beautiful shots of your animal favourites or wild animals in your photo album.
