I
F YOUTHOUGHTlandscapestook
planning,photographingwildlifeis onan
evenhigherlevel.Somuchso,if you’ve
onlya fewdaystospare,we’dsuggesttaking
theriskof disappointmentoffthetableand
investingin a dedicatedphototour.You’ll
oftenbeguidedbylocalsandprofessional
photographerswhohaveyearsof trial-and-
errorbehindthemforcertainsubjectsand
locations.They’llknowwhereandwhento
gobutalsothewaytophotographingthe
subjectsof interest– threemajorfactorsthat
canturnanexpensivetripintoa flopif you
don’tgetthemright.Workshopsfillupfast
toosoif you’rethinkingyouwantto
photographpolarbearsin Nome,baldeagles
in Alaskaorthefivespeciesof Penguinson
theFalklandIslands,you’lleitherneedto
residetodoingpilesof researchorbooka
placewithsomeonewho’sbeenthere
before– numeroustimes– asearlyas
possible.You’llneedaninnateunderstanding
of thespecies’behaviours,matingseasons
andknowhowtophotographthemsafely
andsensitivelyaswellastheirmostfavourite
hauntsat specifictimesof theyear.There’s
honestlynosubstituteforexperience.
It canbetemptingalso,if youwantto
photograph Africa’sBigFive – lion, leopard,rhinocero,elephantandbuffalo– to book
onto a standardsafaritourarmedwitha
telephotolens.However,if greatimagesare
yourultimategoal,don’tsqueezeyourselfinto
a jeepwherethere’slittleroomto change
lensesoryou’restuckwiththesame
viewpointas touristsscramblefora sighting.
Bookyourselfonto a phototourwhereyou’re
withupto sixlike-mindedenthusiastsallwith
thesameaim,orevena hidesafariat a big
gamereserveandwaitforthewildlifeto come
to you.It’llbeanexperiencelikenoother,and
is thebestwayto makeyourinvestmentpay
youbackwithbrilliantpictures.Packa wider
lensthough,if youdo,as thoseanimalsare
likelyto getupcloseandpersonal.
Don’tbedisillusionedthough,evenby
givingyourselfthebestchance,a lotof
successreliesonluckandcreativitycomes
frombeingconfidentin yoursurroundings.
If youplana triponyourown,aswellasdoing
allthenecessaryresearch,you’llneedto
dedicatedays– if notweeks– toa particular
species.Give yourself time to watch and learnFromBorneotoBulgaria,elephantstoeagles,
thereseemstobea workshopforit. It’sgreatif
youneedinspirationforyournexttripbut
bafflingif youdon’tknowthebestfromthe
bogus.Unfortunately,withphotographybeing
everhardertomakemoneyfrom,everyoneis
offeringworkshops.Whenshoppingaroundfor
anexpert,trustin whatyouknowandwhatyou
see– thisgoesforanytypeofworkshopwhether
wildlife,citiesorlandscapes.If they’rereputable
in theUK,seemwell-travelledandyoulovetheir
portfolio,youknowtheiroverseasworkshops
arelikelytobeduediligenttoo.Don’tbetempted
tolookat justthebigphototourcompanies,
oftenthebestonesarerunbyindividual
photographersastheirbusinessesrelyongreat
reviewsandrepeatcustomsotheircustomer
serviceandyourresultingimageswillbeoftheir
upmostimportance.Mostofourcontributors
offer workshops,sopleasetakethetimetolook
at BenHall,RossHoddinott,LeeFrostandMark
Baueraswe'resuretheywon'tdisappoint.
If youjustneedhelpwithwhereandwhento
goratherthanthephotographicside,contactthe
localtouristofficeortouroperatortoaskforlocal
guidesornativephotographerswhomightbe
able to take you on a photo tour for a day.aboutthem,toletthemgetusedtoyou,and
evenemploya hideforround-the-clock
photography.Onlythenareyoulikelytofeel
youhavethefreedomtogetcreativewith
silhouettes,shallowdepth-of-field,panning
andslowshutterspeedtechniquesfor
movingsubjects.Makingsureyouhavethe
rightkitis alsokey,notjustwhenit comesto
focallengthswitha reachof 300mmto
400mmor1.4xteleconverters,butyou’ll
needa monopodorbeanbagstosupport
suchlong,heavylensesanda camerathat
cankeepupwiththesubjects.Fast
autofocus,high-resolutionimagestoallow
forcroppingandgenerousburstratesare
essential,notluxuries,if you’retohave the
best chance of getting a capture.BOOKYOURSELFONTOA PHOTOTOURWHEREYOU’REWITHUP
TOSIX LIKE-MINDED ENTHUSIASTS ALLWITH THE SAMEAIM
Top:Remainingrespectfulandquietcanallowyougetclose
tosometypesof wildlife.Left:Researchyoursubjectsto
understandandpredicttheirbehaviour.Right:Nighthidesare
a fantastic way of photographing wildlife in a different way.THERE ARE A LOTOF T HINGSTHAT
HAVETOGOYOURWAYFOR A T RIP
TOPHOTOGRAPHWILDLIFETOBE
A SUCCESS,HERE ARE JUSTA FEW...GLOBAL
WILDLIFE
WHATTO SHOOT...
TR
ACEY
LUNDKEITHMICHAELTAYLOR/SHUTTERSTOCKSELECTINGAWILDLIFETOUR
PhotoMasterclass
64 DigitalSLR PhotographyOctober 2019