Wildlife Photography How To

Jim Graham captured this adorable image of a sleeping sled dog in front of a majestic backdrop during a trip this past summer to Greenland. The image was shot in Ilulissat, which is in western Greenland, approximately 220 miles north of the Arctic Circle.

If there’s a more challenging photographic discipline than wildlife photography, I don’t know what it is. It requires heavy and expensive long focal length lenses, a sturdy tripod, and the physical prowess to schlep all this gear through physically demanding environments. If you’re thinking “that’s not you, Joe,” you are correctamundo so I asked a few friends for advice on telephoto lenses and this is what they told me.

Andy Biggs shot this striking image of a giraffe under an acacia tree on the Serengeti Plains in Tanzania, Africa, in 2007.

It’s one thing to sit in the safety of a Jeep or Land Rover while photographing the wildlife of the Serengeti. It’s quite another to be one with nature, coming face to face with wild creatures on their level, and even to establish a certain rapport with the animals. Then add yet another ingredient: enduring harsh Arctic conditions for hours, if not days, on end, just to get that one great shot. Welcome to the world of wildlife and nature photographer John Hyde.<

In this video (brought to you by B&H Photo and currently available on YouTube) photographer Chris Nicholson provides a wide variety of pro level tips and tricks to help you get the most from your next visit to one of America’s beautiful National Parks. Captured during a photography workshop, this video has a runtime of nearly one hour and includes sample images, advice on the best places to explore and what to bring with you. 

Telephotos have always been bread-and-butter lenses for photographers shooting everything from commercial and sports to wildlife and landscapes. The ability to separate a subject against its background or pull in a distant scene has made telephoto lenses a staple in nearly every camera bag around the world.

The roads I follow as a travel photographer mostoften lead me to landmarks and landscapes, festivals and events, people and cultures. But not always. As you can see from the photos here, I consider photographing wildlife one of the requirements of a successful travel photographer.