Zoo Photography: Thunder on the Prairie

Sometimes being at the right place at the right times can yield a fruitful result. Hope you enjoy this little tale of tails.

This is what normally happens in prairie dog colonies. Love, kisses, and unity usually are the order of the day.

But then, one day, along came Sally- for that is what we shall call her-to the burrow of one Polly.  "Hey, the whole prairie knows all your dirty little secrets," said Sally.

"Stop spreading lies about me or I'll slap you," retorted Polly.

Thinking she had the advantage of surprise and first strike, Sally locked her jaws on Polly's hand. "Oh, yeah, you and what hand?" 

Somehow Polly freed her hand and unleashed a slap that was to become stuff of legends on the prairie. "Take that you spiteful, lying prairie dog b@#&*" 

Fearful of Polly and unwilling to partake of the slap sandwich Sally had just been handed, other prairie dogs could only comment about it in hushed whispers. "Hey, did I just really just see that?"

Meanwhile not too far away. "Mom, you are the best mom ever...I love you, I love you, I love you."

They hear a slap. "WOW!"

A few feet away, unhindered by the transpired events, some prairie dogs  continue to indulge in the peace, love, and unity that is normally the order of the day on the prairie. 

THE END

Hey, they do have tails and it was a tale, so lighten up. 

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Zoo Photography: Patience

It's been wisely said for ages that patience is a virtue, and there is perhaps no profession in which this is most evident than photography. Photographers know that you have to anticipate and wait. wait. wait. and more wait. Zoo photography requires the same thing. You have to know your subject, anticipate what they will do, and put yourself in the best position to get the shot you want.

Yesterday I visited the zoo for the first time in a few weeks and I only had about 90 minutes before closing time. I couldn't afford to see the whole zoo so I made a beeline for the animals I like to shoot the most around this time of the year.

The prairie dogs were my first stop. Prairie dogs, around this time, have shiny brown coats that look best under a cloudless sun. When I reached them, the sun was bobbing back and forth behind some patchy clouds. I waited until I got the light I wanted, took a few shots, and was fairly happy with the few shots I got. These guys are hands-down my favorite subjects year-round at the Maryland Zoo in Baltimore.

Next, I visited the African Aviary where I was rewarded with one of the subjects that have not given me many good shot opportunities: The Little Blue Heron. This little beautiful bird tends to stay near the fence where it's impossible to get a good shot that doesn't look like it was taken at the zoo. This time, however, it was in the middle of the exhibit and allowed me to get pretty good shots.

I was also lucky that it was a relatively quiet day at the zoo and the animals seemed more relaxed.

After that I hung around the gazelles before heading to the lions. I hung around hoping for a good shot, knowing that on cool days, they are more likely to move around in a particular location. I hunkered down and waited for my shot. I wasn't disappointed.

Patience doesn't mean you will get the shot that day, it just means that you might get your shot a few months down the road. Be patient, anticipate, and always keep hope that the animals will be kind enough to give you a good shot.

***Please note that I don't agitate animals. Hassan, the lion, wasn't snarling at me. This is the back end of a yawn.

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Zoo Photography: Like You Were There

Not like you were at the zoo, silly...the wild. Swimming with crocodiles, running with zebras, roaring with lions. Make it seem like you weren't shooting at the zoo.

Over many of my past posts, I have give tips and hints on how to get those great zoo pictures, and have highlighted the importance of preparation, subject and gear knowledge, and luck. I want to add a little tip I picked up a while back and have used successfully on several occasions.

 

What's the difference between this image and the next one?




I know they're of different rhinos, but which was seems more like it was taken in the wild? Here's another one.




If you can add branches or other natural objects to make it seem like you were in the wild, you will also add a certain degree of drama to your shot. Is the animal aware of your intrusion, or is it oblivious and carrying on with its activities? Where does the viewer think you were when you shot it?

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Zoo Photography: Midday Sun and Shadows

Most photographers will tell you it's not wise to shoot under the midday sun, some have even claimed you can't get a good picture due to the harshness of the light and the hard contrast, but I think you can get amazing images if you know what you are doing.
During my photography career, I've shot a lot of outside events and this has bred in me the habit of analyzing shadows before taking the picture. When I first started, I saw a lot of what I thought were good images ruined by ugly shadows taking attention away from the subjects. As a result, I came up with a few strategies to combat this and take those great images. I'll be focusing on zoo photography although you can use these for any outside shoot.
Positioning is important because it will affect the background, which can be brighter or darker than the subject, and how the subject is lit. If the subject is between you and the light, you might need to increase the exposure compensation, or lower it if you're between the subject and the light. What kind of image you're trying to shoot will affect your positioning. If a dark subject is between you and the light and the background is the sky, you might want to go for an overblown white/gray background.

This perched Abdim's Stork stands out against a near-blank background of an overblown sky. It's easier for this sort of portraiture effect if the subject is between you and the light (sun). Another example:

The second thing to take into consideration is the direction of light, which will affect your positioning based on the kind of image you want. Many times I've seen animals lighted on one side while the other is shadowed. In this case, figure out which side you want to shoot but make sure the other side doesn't show much to cause too much distraction.

Here I chose to shoot this black-tailed prairie dog from the lighted side, and its shadowed side doesn't distract even though its partially visible.
In this next one, I shot the shadowed side.

You don't have to stop shooting just because the sun is harsh outside, just make sure shadows aren't messing up your image. The sun can add a certain life and vibrancy to your images, especially in the spring and summer months.

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Zoo Photography: Eastern Screech Owl

All owls are fascinating creatures to me but the eastern screech owl is even more so. For starters, it's really small, which makes me wonder how it survives as a predator. While watching one of them at the zoo today, I got a chance to see these creatures' predatory nature.

As I was talking to the keeper about another one of the animals, a house sparrow flew nearby collecting duck down feathers. All of a sudden she perked up, raised her pointed ear tufts, and her attention intensely focused on the sparrow.

Here it is giving me the mean look moments before the house sparrow made its appearance.

And here it is intently sizing up the sparrow. 

Did you know: Nestling Screech-owls fight fiercely among themselves for food, and sometimes even kill and eat their smallest sibling. (from http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Eastern_Screech-owl/lifehistory)

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