Introduction

Anyone can take a snapshot of a wild animal or bird. It takes observing, patience, practice, perseverance, and most important, time behind the camera along with the right equipment to take your photography to greater heights and make great wildlife shots!

This book begins by illustrating the fact that you don’t have to have the biggest and baddest, high-performance cameras and lenses to make great wildlife images. In Chapter 1, I cover equipment basics, from a nice, starter, wildlife kit to high-performance bodies and bazooka-like lenses that enable you to make the in-your-face wildlife images you dream of.

In Chapter 2, I explain the camera settings that I use when photographing wildlife and provide images to illustrate the result of those settings. I then touch on Exposure Triangle in Chapter 3, clarifying aperture, shutter speed, and ISO, and their relationship to each other and to the outcome of your images.

The more you know about your subject, the better you can anticipate its next move and be ready when it happens. Chapter 4 gives you ideas on how to learn more. Once you have the gear, have tweaked the buttons and dials to suit your style of shooting, and know your subject, it’s time to get out and shoot.

In Chapter 5, I discuss some of my favorite locations and seasons that give me the best photographic opportunities to photograph my subject of choice.

Moving right along in the progression to becoming the best wildlife photographer you can be, in Chapter 6, I discuss options for safely getting closer to your subject, and in Chapter 7, I cover composing your photographs in a pleasing arrangement so that people pause for just a moment longer while they enjoy your images.

Once you have the basics of wildlife photography down, you are ready to move on to Chapter 8 and go beyond the basics, introducing your own style, likes, and dislikes into your image making.

I wrap up the book by taking you along on two wildlife photo shoots. Chapter 9 takes you on an actual adventure to photograph bears in Alaska, giving you a sense of real-world wildlife photography. Chapter 10 follows in the same vein, but I take you to South Texas to photograph the many species of birds that frequent the area.

So, just turn the page to begin your journey to become a better wildlife photographer.