Tips On How To Photograph Wildlife
Come to Afognak Lodge for the Ultimate Opportunity to Capture Wildlife
If you’re looking for an Alaska travel deal, Afognak Wilderness Lodge offers one of the most unique experiences on the continent. The land & marine wildlife viewing/photography, sea kayaking and, of course, fresh & saltwater fishing expeditions are part of a fantastic nature-tour vacation. Awaiting you is a wide array of wildlife including the popular Kodiak Brown Bear, assorted sea mammals, soaring bald eagles and comical puffins.Check out some of the photographs taken by our some of our past guests Alaskan Wildlife Portfolio & Photography OpportunitiesA Photographer’s Dream: Multiple boats and guides provide yet another choice… outstanding almost mosquito-less wildlife viewing & photography.
Six Tips To Improve Your Wildlife Photography
Looking for a place to plan your next vacation? Instead of charting a course to some tropical isle in the Caribbean, challenge yourself to a truly unique, and rewarding experience with an Alaska wilderness vacation. We guarantee you won't regret it, and here are 5 reasons to back us up:
1. Choosing Your Camera: There are many cameras out there for purchase but few are the best options for capturing wildlife. SLR and mirrorless cameras are recommended for these tasks because they can come weather-sealed, can be set to manual, and the lens can be changed.
2. Know How To Operate Your Camera: If you do choose to use a camera with manual mode, knowing how to work the settings and abilities of your camera is extremely important. Being familiar with the capabilities of aperture, shutter speed, and the characters of a certain lens can play a HUGE factor in helping you get your shot.
Here are some things to brush up on before hitting the site:
Shutter Speed: review the minimum shutter speed setting of your camera and lens to achieve a crisp image. When shooting an object that is moving a lot, choose a faster shutter speed to avoid any motion blur, shoot quicker, and avoid “missing the moment”.
Slow Moving Animals: 1/1000 second shutter speed
Fasting Moving Animal: 1/2000 second or higher shutter speed
Added Margins: know the lens stabilization or the in-camera margins.
Focus: be knowledgeable about how quickly you can change focus points or focus modes
ISO: Be aware of how high you can push your cameras ISO settings before lowering the quality of your photos. To minimize the noise in your photos a low ISO (100, 200, etc.) is recommended. When there is low light then it is recommended to use a higher ISO, though it does depend on the camera, an ISO of 800 is recommended in low light situations.
3. Understand & Work With Your Lighting: There are certain times of the day that has the best light for Photography. The best times to photograph are during golden hours, which can be sunrise or late in the afternoon. Light in the middle of the day is rather harsh and can be difficult to work with to see good results. Going back to the first point of knowing how to work your camera, knowing how to properly use your ISO range, can help add to the image.
4. Understand Your Subject: Whether you are adventuring to Alaska for the wonderful marine life or inland wildlife, it is helpful to understand the habits and movement of your subject. Before you go out, it is important to familiarize yourself with the animal's behavior and where to find them. Knowing a little background about where and what time the animal might be out and about is important to find them. Now, once you find them, you can learn a lot about the animal from taking the time to observe them. Instead of taking your shot as soon as possible, waiting and observing the movement of your subject can make all the difference in the world when it comes to capturing a golden moment. That golden moment could be a snake going in for its prey or a Kodiak bear catching its dinner from the river, using patience and being observative can help you catch that perfect shot. If you study them long enough you can anticipate their next move, ask yourself:
What do you think they are doing?
What do you predict they are about to do?
5. Stay Calm & Quiet: It is important to keep a low profile when you find your subject. Animals can be startled quite easily, therefore when approaching them you should move very slowly when you know they are not looking at you. Once you get to a safe distance you can then set up for your shot. When you are prepping for your shoot, it is helpful to avoid bright colors on your gear or in your clothing to avoid being spotted by your subject.6. Be There In The Moment, Enjoy It! Though it may be easier said than done, when you are working in front of the beautiful Alaskan landscape with Alaskian Wildlife as your subject it is important to not get so caught up in technical parts of capturing these moments. You want to make sure you are still taking in the moment, the beautiful landscape, and the incredible wildlife.
Book Your Kodiak, Alaska Wilderness Vacation
Magnificent Photography: Whether you're photographing wildlife or landscapes, Kodiak Island is any photographer's dream. You'll find plentiful opportunities to photograph bears, birds, buffalo, mountain goats, Sitka deer, and whales, and because the summer months offer extended daylight, the "Golden Hour" lighting near sunrise and sunset lasts for hours each time. Truth be told, these are just a few of the many reasons that a wilderness vacation to the Kodiak Archipelago is guaranteed to be an unforgettable experience – and the only way to understand is to experience it for yourself. Contact us today to learn more about our Kodiak wilderness lodging and to schedule your own Alaska wilderness vacation. We can't wait to help you experience the majesty of this untouched, breathtaking place!