Wildlife Photography across the Water: Water, Dragons and Sub Conscience

Saturday 4 June 2011

Water, Dragons and Sub Conscience

Yesterday i had a tonne of stuff to finish so that i could send a submission off to my agent but as with all plans it did not work out quite how i had planned and for some reason Photoshop would not let me allow to enter the meta-data, So i decided to take a couple of hours off and go out with the Kayak and check out the ospreys nest and take a gentle paddle around the bay to see if there was anything else about, I fancy shooting a water moccasin although i am not too happy being near snakes this species kinda fascinates me, The osprey was on its nest and had its wings spread protecting the young from the sun and heat, I took a few shots but knew that the light was still harsh, i had a heron fly very close and landed its its own nest which was cool, The main thing i wanted to do was to get some time under my belt in the kayak, they are not the most stable of crafts to be shooting in and confidence is the key to success,the session was very enjoyable so i headed back, I had a pizza and beer in the garden and as i was eating i noticed something move in the hedge and upon closer inspection i could see a Green Anole (lizard) sitting in the fence, Its the first time i had seen one in the wild, It wasnt as green as i had seen in the pics in my book but it did say that they can change colour quickly and be brown, I grabbed my tripod and put the D3s and 600 on it, The front of the hedge was in shade and the sun light was behind it, I took a shot and got this

Its OK but the background light kinda over powers the subject and i wanted it a bit bigger in the frame, I had to add an extension tube to allow me to focus closer and felt that some fill light would help with the exposure

Now this is more like it and perfectly usable but i felt that the flash had under exposed the background so i lowered the shutter-speed and dialled the flash down to -1.7ev

I felt that this was a more natural look, Because the shutter speed was very low (1/30) and i was using a 600 lens i used the mirror lock up facility to stop any mirror slap and to help keep the image sharp, The subject was very relaxed which helps when adjusting exposures and flash setting and over the period of about 30 mins i had plenty of opportunities to shoot it in various positions

After the lizard had moved on i sat down and gone over the session, It came into my mind how i had first seen it, I think after all these years of shooting wildlife you are always on your guard and sub conscientiously your eyes are scanning for movement even when you do not realise then again it could have been the beer

Dave

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Bio's

David Courtenay, a self taught wildlife and nature photographer, has been capturing images for over 30 years. He has had a passion for wildlife since early childhood and remembers being glued to the television whenever Survival, Wildlife on One and other natural history documentaries were shown. In the 2006 he swapped his established career for the life of a wildlife photographer, such a move demands a measure of uncompromising passion and commitment.

David has travelled extensively throughout Europe as well as spending more than 7 months in India working with local guides and trackers in search of Bengal Tiger, Asian One horned Rhino and Asian Elephant. He has also photographed Wildlife in Australia, Malaysia, Thailand, Sumatra, Africa, Canada and America. Working closely with Conservation companies he tries to raise funds to help Wildlife that has been put on the endangered list by poaching and habitation loss

Martin Dyer has had a passion for avian wildlife since childhood, particularly raptors. Photography was also another keen interest and it was with the specific availability and control of the whole process that digital offers that Martin was then able to combine the two in 2003. Based in the UK, Martin is a regular visitor to Scotland, specifically the Isle of Mull to watch the Eagles resident there. Other trips to Europe and around the UK are usually part of Martin’s agenda in a typical year.

However, as a firm believer on making the most of the local patch, Martin has spent a lot of time and hard work creating a wildlife garden which is reaping the rewards with many new species and varieties of wildlife. A keen member of a number of wildlife photographic groups, Martin is keen to expand his portfolio into other areas of wildlife, and has already established a wide portfolio of images of fungi.