Clicking White Subject in a Wildlife Photography Workshop

While you are taken on an expedition to complete an assignment for a wildlife photography workshop, you might have a lot of experience of photographing several white subjects. Polar bear, for an instance, always arouses the interest of wildlife photographers. Arctic fox, snowy owl, arctic hare, and willow ptarmigan- there are many white animals that can cross the path of a wildlife photographer. Keeping these aside, even if you want to photograph a snow-covered land or nature’s photo when it is snowing, you need to know how to click white subjects. However, a lot of photographers fail to understand how they can work it out.

Problems with exposure control

The key point that a photographer needs to remember is that while you shoot a white subject, your meters tend to read for middle tone. A meter cannot distinguish among a white bird, a gray bird or a black bird. For the meter, they are all the same. So, a meter will provide you with a zero exposure in all these cases. Unfortunately, this makes a white bird look gray, the gray bird looks middle-toned and a black bird will also look gray. This creates a disaster.

Solution

A lot of people suggest using evaluative metering or matrix metering to solve this problem. Veterans in a nature photography workshop always suggest that using spot metering in manual mode can help to solve this process. You can have absolute control over the process this way and click white subjects without worries.

This helps to set the meter perfectly. You do not need to second guess or put a bracket on your meter. This method practically ensures that the exposure is accurate.

Other components

In a macro photography course, photographing white substance becomes all the more difficult. You need to maintain the focus as the view of angle is broader than normal photography. At the same time, you need to control the exposure also. You need to thoroughly understand histograms, metering for white, black and all tonalities. These will help to develop the understanding of exposure in detail.

Color balance is a very important factor for wildlife photography workshop. It can change the quality of your photograph significantly. So, you need to decide which technique you will use to balance the exposure of a white subject. Proper theoretical knowledge and constant practice can lead you to perfection. So, diligent practice is the key to your success.

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5 Useful Tips from a Wildlife Photography Course

The popularity of wildlife photography as a career is growing constantly. With the upsurge of accessibility to digital cameras these days, more and more enthusiasts are joining a wildlife photography course to turn their passion for photography into their profession. There are many valuable techniques that wildlife photographers should learn. However, here are 5 basic tips that every expert would like to pass on to the aspiring wildlife photographers. Let’s have a look at those 5 tips:

Study your subject

Wildlife photography requires a thorough knowledge of the subject, i.e. the animal or landscape you are going to shoot. If you just show up at a location to photograph a certain animal species without knowing its intricacies, you will never be able to get a good shot. You must have a prior research about your subject.

Use lens hood

Lens hood protects the lens from getting hit by stray light. This helps your endeavors of producing clearer pictures. In addition to that, lens hood also provides your lens with physical protection. In a macro photography workshop, when you practice producing larger images of a smaller object through the use of your lens, your lens hood will help you with the light condition.

Use Aperture Priority mode

Well, it is a myth that good photographers shoot only in ‘manual’ mode. It is not that aperture priority mode is only for novices. On the contrary, some professional wildlife photographers have clicked really beautiful pictures in aperture priority mode. Although manual mode has its use under some specific circumstances, no one should refrain from aperture priority mode if that is necessary. You can adjust your ISO in AP mode to increase your shutter speed for still subjects or decrease it if your shoot a moving subject.

Waiting is the key

You have to be very patient and prepared to wait if you are aspiring to be a wildlife photographer. In order to get a good shot you have to wait for hours (if you are lucky) and even days. Some people need to return time and again to the same place to click a beautiful image.

Think Different

You can learn a lot of basics and advanced techniques at a landscapes photography workshop, but in order to make your photographs stand out, you must think out-of-the-box. You must concentrate on clicking something unique, unusual with usual subjects that has an appeal, a wow-effect to the viewer.

Joining a good wildlife photography course is the start. Being a good wildlife photographer needs diligent practice at the workshop and the strong will to do better.

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