Who Else Wants to Take Beautiful Wildlife Photos?

Even experienced photographers find wildlife photography a rewarding, but sometimes frustrating experience. A good photo of a wild animal in its natural habitat is a great memory, but the challenges it brings can make a beginner feel a bit overwhelmed. 'It was a great experience, but the photos don't really capture it.' is a common phrase we hear from people who come back from exotic holidays. This happens even when you have everything set and your camera ready - you just miss the shot. You can't usually blame the quality of the camera for this. Even with the best camera there is, if we rush to take a picture - any picture - we are bound to make mistakes that ruin the opportunity of a great wildlife photo. Here are some common mistakes many amateur photographers make and ways to avoid them.

1. Not Getting Close Enough to the Subject. This is the most obvious mistake someone can make. You see a rare bird in a tree and rush to take a photo, but when you look at it later you can hardly see the bird behind the leaves. Before taking the photo, ask yourself what is important to catch and eliminate all the rest. You can do this by getting as close as you can to the subject (without scaring it away) and/or zooming in using the largest lens. This way you eliminate all the distractions and the viewer can concentrate on the subject itself.

2. Catching Too Much of the Background. Many people keep their cameras on automatic which lets it select its own settings. While this occasionally works, if you want to get great wildlife photos you need to make these choices for yourself. If the aperture of the camera is set too small, you get a wider area of field around your subject, which is a disturbing distraction. When photographing animals, it is best to set the aperture at the widest. This narrows field depth and the focus is on the animal not the surroundings. It also comes with another advantage, which is faster speed, helping you catch the perfect moment when photographing a moving subject.

3. Getting Too Close to your Subject. From fear that their subject will not be visible enough, especially if they've had such experiences, some people fall in the opposite mistake and that is getting too close. If you catch an animal alone with no surroundings, it seems a bit out of place and the photo can look rather unnatural. You need a small background so that the composition doesn't look cramped. This means at least some small space above the subject's head and some on each side. In case the animal looks to the right or left, you should adjust the composition to make sure you have a bit more space in front of it than behind. This way it will seem that the animal looks right into the picture not at the frame.

4. Bad lighting. While you may like to get out on nice sunny days, this is not necessarily the best time to take a good picture. Bright sunshine can create shadows where you least want them; that is, on the face of your subject. If you take a photo at noon and the sun is shining brightly you may find that the whole face of the animal is covered with a dark shadow. If you really want good photos and it's a sunny day, take the early in the morning o in the evening when the sun is lower upon the sky. This gives you a warmer light and lower contrast, making the whole photo more expressive. Often the best photos are taken on cloudy days, when there is less light and lower contrast. This type of light takes off heavy shadow and glare.

5. Bad timing. This is also a very common mistake when photographing wild animals. They are alive, they move, blink, flap their wings or turn their back. You can sometimes get so frustrated that you feel they are doing it on purpose just to make sure you miss your photo. However, you shouldn't get discouraged. For every wildlife photographer, the opportunities to take a bad picture are endless, while the ones to take a great one are only a few. But they are well worth the waiting. It is just a matter of perseverance and patience. If you spend more time with the animal you will learn to anticipate its moves and improve your chances of getting a better shot. Try to catch something unique, memorable, something that can set your picture apart from the thousands of wildlife photographs out there. You should expect to miss the shot very often and most of your photos will probably be bulk. But when you do get that perfect moment on camera, it will be something to treasure.