10 Tips To Take Better Zoo Photos

Summer is here and it is just the perfect time to go the ZOO!

And while you are there, why not take photos of your favorite animals. Here’s how to do it:

1. Go early in the morning or at the end of the day, when it is not too hot and when the light is soft (golden hours). Check the feeding times; animals will come out for food. Overcast days are good, since it is not too hot and the animals are more active.

2. Don’t shoot through glass, unless there is no other option. Look for spots on the glass without scratches or fingerprints. If you use flash, shoot it at an angle that minimizes reflection.

3. Look for the direction of the sun. The light should come from behind you or from the side.

4. Make sure to focus on your subject, not on the background, so that you avoid blurry images when working with high apertures or automatic settings.

5. Limit the use of flash. In addition to scaring the animals, in most cases, the animal is too far to benefit from the additional light. Play with your ISO instead; modern cameras produce good quality images even with ISO 800 (or more).

6. If you’re new to photography, start with the big animals that don’t move too fast, such as elephants,

rhinos and giraffes.

7. Try to get as close to the animal as possible, without breaking any rule!

8. Bring a zoom lens so that you can catch every detail. 200mm focal length or more is ideal, although it depends on how far the animal is from the camera. A prime lens will produce sharper images than a zoom lens, but it takes away the flexibility of changing focal lengths. The higher the lens’ aperture, the better, F2.8 works quite well.

9. If you’re taking a photo of a person in front of the exhibit, take it from the side, or take the back. This kind of interaction with the exhibits looks great in photos. If you want to see his/her face, ask him/her to turn around when you say so and ask him/her not to look towards the camera.