Zoo Photography: Some Basics

You've finally saved enough money to get yourself a nice camera and maybe a telephoto lens and now you're ready to delve into the world of nature photography. It has taken you months, years if you're one of those hardest hit by harsh economic conditions, and you are ready to show the world what you are capable of now that you have the right tools. Alas, however, a ticket anywhere outside your city's limits is, well, out of limits. Even if you sacrifice two meals a day for the next six months you still won't be able to get a ticket to Yellowstone let alone Serengeti. Oh, but you've seen those images of stampeding wildebeest, giraffes's heads towering over trees, lions stalking their next meal, cheetahs speeding through the veld. You've seen them all and you know you're as capable as the next photographer to capture the next National Geographic Image of the Year.

That's when you realize your city has its own zoo. You get your equipment, get some coins from the change jar, and hitchhike your way to the zoo. You smile, grasp your equipment- we're talking camera and lens here, folks- and head for the nearest exhibit. You snap away, but something is missing. It just doesn't feel like you were on Safari. The animals are there, but even you know your images won't fool any of your friends, let alone win you a prestigious award.

You know what's to blame. Those darned fences, glass barriers, and unnatural exhibit environments. Seriously, who has ever seen The Lion King's Timon sitting under a red light? Or a chimpanzee swinging on a tire swing in the wild?

You don't have to worry, though, there are others who've been through your shoes, yours truly being among them. I'll show you simple ways to shoot different exhibits.

1. Through Wire Fences

The trick here is two-fold: Use a long focal length lens and get as close to the fence as possible. Some zoos don't allow you to go right next to fence, so make sure you don't jump over whatever barrier they erect. Those barriers are there for your safety and that of the animals, so obey the rules.

You also have to watch where the sun is as it will reflect off the fence and will be noticeable in the image.

Leopards mating.

See the milky areas around and on the leopards? That's the reflection of the fence. The opportunity was a godsend...how often do you see mating leopards? It was the perfect situation at the wrong time. The sun was setting behind me, so the fence threw the reflection at the camera. Another factor, which I would have been able to overcome if it wasn't sunny, was there was about 3 or 4 yards between the fence and where I could stand. So, if I was closer, or the sun wasn't too bright, it would have been a much better shot.

In the image below, the arctic fox was shot through the wire and the sun was not behind me throwing a ghosting effect in the images. However, the animal was close to the back fence and it still showed in the image.

Arctic Fox

2. Through the Glass

Some people say you have to put the lens, preferably with the hood, at a slanting angle to the glass, but from my experience it's best to put the lens at a 90-degree angle perpendicular to the glass. This works to minimize reflections. Look at the glass and pick an area without reflection. 

Lion through the glass. Outdoor exhibit.

Blue Iguana through the glass. Indoor exhibit. 

3. Environment

The hardest thing to accomplish is to make the animal look as if it's in its natural state. The key is positioning and isolation. Position yourself in the best place to isolate the animal. Obviously, this eliminates wide angle lenses, I have yet to shoot any zoo animal using anything less than a 100mm lens, which I use primarily for indoor exhibits. 300mm is ideal for the zoo and there are a lot of good inexpensive lenses at that length. 

Another trick is to use a large aperture. I normally shoot at F/5.6 to isolate the animals. Indoors, I increase it to F/2.8 and would go higher if my lens allowed.

Elephants with fence in the background

You can see the fence in the background and there was just no way I could get it out with the longest lens I had. The elephants exhibit at my local zoo is really not set up to allow good shots, so I only go by there to look at the elephants and not to shoot. 

Here's one of a bird with the background blurred. You can't tell there's a net above the bird. You can see two large wires that help hold up the net, but they're blurred enough not to cause a distraction. 

Abdim's Stork

Sometimes you just have to walk away from exhibits without shots, or you need a few visits before you can identify the best way to shoot that particular animal- I imagine it's that way even in the wild-so don't feel bad about not getting a great shot of every animal in the zoo. 

4. Be Alert

You never know when a great photo opportunity will throw itself in your proverbial lap. Visiting the National Zoo one day, I exited the Invertebrates house and found myself in the pollinarium.  I didn't plan to shoot butterflies and I'm a lousy macro photographer but I managed to get off a few good shots of the only model who stayed put for me.

Zebra Longwing butterfly

So, keep your eye out, shoot more than the animals most people associate with the zoo. Find animals hiding in interesting places. Shoot flowers and other plants. make it seem like you were there in the wild. 

Roseate Spoonbill

Also watch out for shadows as they will mess up your image. Cloudy days are good to avoid shadows, but the diminished light can affect how some animals look in photographs. Experiment and see which weather is best for the animals you like to shoot. For me, prairie dogs are reserved for sunny weather, while others such as the white stork are good in cloudy weather. If the dark, you want sunny...if it's white, you want cloudy. 

Go, Go, Go

Well, now you have a few basics down. The rest is up to you. Some photographers haunt the same exhibit day in and day out hoping to get the money shot...you might want to try their tactic. Study the animals, their environment, and keep practicing. Never fear being wrong or missing a shot, even the best photographers miss good shots from time to time. All you need is enough great shots to increase your confidence. Even though it won't take you to exotic wild places, it will get you on the way to being a good wildlife photographer. 

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