Bush Warriors Wildlife Photography Workshop A Fresh Start

Hi everybody!

With a lot of very exciting developments in the pipeline at both Bush Warriors and Photo-Africa things have been hectically busy but it is good to be back!

One of the new, and very exciting, new parts of Photo-Africa is a weekly video chat where we look at wildlife photography and pretty much anything to do with this wonderful past time.

These videos are a great way to keep widening our online community and includes:

• Wildlife photography tips
• Lightroom Tutorials
• Discussion on photography
• Random thoughts related to wildlife and photography

I am very happy to say that after chatting with Dori, we will be sharing the Weekly Chats, which are posted every Friday, on the Bush Warriors website.

I look forward to hearing from you so please feel free to contact me with any questions or thoughts you might have on wildlife photography.

Below is the latest chat, divided into two parts, and then a list of all the previous chats we have done!

Hope you enjoy.

These chats are a great way to share information and in future we will be including a conservation section as well.

If you have any questions or comments please don’t hesitate to contact me!

If you have any interesting wildlife or nature conservation links please feel free to send them through so that we can share them

Gerry van der Walt

Bush Warriors Wildlife Photography Workshop

is brought to you  by:

Bush Warriors Wildlife Photography Workshop: ‘Decisions and Choices’ with Grant Marcus

Please welcome our guest pro photographer, Mr. Grant Marcus!

‘Decisions and Choices’ with Grant Marcus

So often we sit with decisions in wildlife photography that can either work or bomb out completely.  Especially when you have an opportunity to capture something rare or unique.  It normally happens at the worst time of day, early morning and late, late afternoon.  That is where you need to know your equipment.  Post-processing plays an enormous role in the outcome of your image especially if you worked in bad light.

These lion images were shot just after 6:00 a.m. in the morning.  Normally, I wouldn’t even bother shooting them in this light, but the situation, the scene ,and the opportunity to capture something unique was there and I had to take it.  In wildlife photography you only get maybe one chance to get that unique shot of a species.  We all know that lions swimming and playing in water is, in itself, a unique opportunity.

Wildlife Photography Workshop: Check Your LCD

What is the best thing about digital cameras?

Easy answer – the LCD screen!

No, really.  The ability to see the image you just created is something that not enough people use.  I am not even referring to the histogram, which we will cover in future posts, but just the ability to see the image.

Look at the following example.

Not a bad image.

Nice detail.

Interesting light.

But something is missing…

The tongue!

It makes the image pop and come alive.  It gives a slightly flat image a more dynamic feeling.

It might be a very small thing but when you start taking your photography serious you will find that it is the small details that can make the difference between a good and a great image.

The above two images are a part of a series of about 8 images I shot specifically with the intention of including the tongue in the image.  I knew from experience that including the tongue of a drinking animal lifts the image to the next level, so after every couple of frames I would check the LCD screen to see if I nailed the shot.

In the days when we were still shooting film this was impossible and you would have to wait to see if you captured the moment.  That precise moment.

Here is another example.

The bottom image is the shot I wanted, even though I would have liked the big guy to open his eyes a little more.

The top image was the result of me just aiming and shooting.  I was convinced that the lion’s eyes were open when I clicked the shutter but when I checked my LCD I saw that he closed them at that precise moment.  It’s amazing how often wildlife subjects subjects seem to do that! 🙂

So, what is the bottom line?

Always check your LCD screen before deciding whether you have your shot.  Just because of that, digital rocks!

I’m off to Bangkok for a few days, but I’ll be back again next week!

Get out there, photograph wildlife, check your LCD and then post your images to the Bush Warriors Photo of the Day contest.

See ya next week.

Gerry van der Walt