Take Paw-some Pet Photos With Tips From A Nat Geo Photographer - Or Go For His Upcoming Action-Packed Talk
Being charged at by grizzly bears is all in a day’s work for wildlife photographer and National Geographic contributor Joel Sartore.
Being charged at by grizzly bears is all in a day’s work for wildlife photographer and National Geographic contributor Joel Sartore.
When it comes to animals, wildlife photographer Joel Sartore, 55, has almost seen it all.
The American lensman has 25 years of experience shooting for the National Geographic. Other than Instagram, where he has 1mil followers (@joelsatore), Joel also documents his work on a project called National Geographic Photo Ark, the world’s largest archive of animal studio portraits which he started in 2005 to raise awareness about animal extinction and save endangered species.
“I feel like a shepherd of animals responsible for telling their stories, but I’m also a little bit nervous that I won’t do a good job,” laughs the paw-rent of two dogs who will be in Singapore this month to give a National Geographic Live! talk about his work.
We won’t give too much about his talk away, but we did get Joel to share tips on how to snap, er, paw-some photos of our pets. Who says your dog can’t be an Instagram star
1. Don’t force Fido to pose
“People forget that it’s hard to get pets and children to do what they don’t want to do, like sit there and stare at you,” says Joel. “Don’t force a moment on them. You need to be patient and wait for a good chance [to snap photos], like when you’re eating a sandwich and they’re looking at you eating it.”
2. The Pooch Selfie gadget only works sometimes
You’re meant to attach a tennis ball to this doodad and fix it onto your phone to get your pet to focus on the camera. But things may not always go according to the PR spiel. According to Joel, “It might work if the animal is motivated to look at the ball.” Which means if you usually can’t get Mr Cuddles to do your bidding even with treats, don’t bother.
3. Position yourself strategically
Unless you’re trying to shoot a predatory beast, Joel recommends moving closer to the animal for better photos. “The key is to put the camera at their eye level so you can get a picture of them looking at you in the eye.”
4. Use flash for fast-moving animals
Joel shares, “[For quick animals], we usually use flash, like in fashion photography. The flash is very short and freezes the action.”
5. You don’t have to invest in expensive cameras
Joel reckons he has “taken great photos with an iPhone many times without using a single app”. The trick? Good old-fashioned waiting for the right moment to snap. “People need to be more patient. We have waited for animals who take 20 to 30 minutes to eat their breakfast.”
6. It’s all about timing
“To get nice lighting, either work very early or late in the day.”
PHOTOS: JOEL SARTORE’S INSTAGRAM/ NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC
Joel on the reality of being a wildlife photographer
According to Joel: "Being bluff-charged by grizzlies and wolves sounds cool, but it’s actually really terrifying! I stood my ground and they ended up not charging at me. Very few wildlife photographers get killed by big animals. The insects carrying diseases are what gets you! I got a strain of Ebola in Bolivia and was quarantined, and an infection from flesh-eating parasites. But the most dangerous [part of the job] is navigating the traffic. Things like landing on a runway with warthogs on it, or travelling around the world with lots of camera gear that people want to steal. But I don’t think about the risks that much. I think about the results."
Monkey businesss
Joel jokes that one should never work with animals and children. "I once spent a lot of time setting up a paper backdrop for some chimps (pictured above), and they didn’t even so much as step on it before they completely annihilated it. But we try to keep the photoshoot short, a couple of minutes at the most. We are quiet and respectful, so the animals don’t have anything to be afraid of.”
On the most impressive animals to shoot
“The scariest animals to shoot have got to be big cats,” says Joel. “When you get near them, they let out this tremendous roar. But they’re also some of the most impressive [creatures]; they’re frightening and exhilarating at the same time. We mostly work with animals who have been raised by people, so they are [tamer]. I only photograph each species once and get on to another species. There’s not enough time when you’ve so many animals to shoot! But I have made some exceptions, like when somebody said, ‘Oh, we’ve got this new baby panda that’s really cute, can you shoot it?’”
Join the cub
Joel hanging out with a clouded leopard cub.
Crocodile rock
A reptile strikes a pose for Joel's camera.
Toilet break?
A Brazilian porcupine looking like it needs to, er, pee.
