Tips on getting the prefect shot of an animal

1. Positioning of equipment and setting yourself a goal -  When I visit the likes of the zoo or the park I set up my tripod however I do not set it up in an obtrusive way, I don’t want the animal to feel like I am invading their space all I want is a nice and natural looking picture and so it’s best not to get up too close to their personal space because animals can be quite territorial and if you do invade their space chances are you won’t get the picture you want. After setting up my tripod in the right place and position I then set myself a goal on what shot I hope to get whether it of a tiger or leopard etc., in the shot I want to get them either looking straight at me or yawing showing off their teeth. If it’s a Bird flying over a lake or a duck either in the lake or on the edge of the lake then I have to set my camera equipment up knowing I will be here for short time.

2. Reflection – Some animals shots are best done with a technique called reflection. Put simply this is just when you get a bird or a duck in or flying over the water and you get their reflection perfectly in the water below. Reflection shots are best done on seagulls, other birds and sometimes ducks. These shots can be quite hard to get because the water as to completely still and this doesn’t happen a lot because there are other ducks or birds in the water or sometimes it may be down to the weather for example it could be that the wind at the time is blowing in such a way that its making ripples in the water and even rain can disturb the stillness of the water. Although these shots are hard to get once you get a good reflection shot it makes a brilliant picture and is well worth the time and effort it may take to get it.

3. How to get the prefect shot of animals in Pet shops and Zoo's - When I am doing a pet shop shoot Timing is the key factor especially when it comes to taken shots of Lizards, Parrots usually the shop owner will take the animal out for me. I have experience in handling reptiles and I know how exactly to grab their attention for example with Bearded Dragons they seem to love the camera and will look directly at you without you having to do anything to grab their attention, a lot of my wildlife photography can be found on numerous of blogs, websites and in pet shops around Dublin.