Nature Photography How To

Obtaining properly exposed photos can be difficult when shooting outdoors under ever changing light. This is particularly true when photographing birds and other forms of wildlife that often move quickly from sun to shade.

Today we’re not going to get into another discussion of the many advantages of Raw files compared to JPEGs. Let’s just assume that, for whatever reason, you shot a bunch of JPEG images and they look really awful.

Let’s face it: Not all of us have the time or means to go on safari to photograph exotic animals in their natural habitat. The next best option is a trip to the local zoo with a long lens, and that can be a load of fun.

One of the most basic components of great photographs is an accurate exposure with a broad range of tones, yielding details in both shadows and highlights. This goal can often be a challenge when shooting outside under complicated mixed light.

It’s not uncommon to have a distracting object or two in otherwise beautiful outdoor images. Sometimes that’s because you weren’t paying attention, while in other cases there was simply no way to compose the scene without the offending objects in the frame.

You’ve probably heard the silly adage that “If the mode dial on your camera isn’t set to ‘M’ you’re not a real photographer.” While most pros would disagree, there are clearly advantages to choosing camera settings yourself.

You know the expression: "wisdom comes from experience"? That certainly applies to photography particularly when shooting landscapes, as landscape pro Mark Denney explains in the below tutorial.