Animals and Pets

Pet photography (or animal photography of any kind) can throw up a host of technical and practical challenges and it's safe to say that the outcome of any shoot can never really be predicted. Most animals move around, some more than others, and comparatively few of them understand what we say to them (and like people, many suffer from selective hearing). Animals should always be photographed in a secure and familiar environment, which of course isn't always the ideal environment for photography. But when we're shooting we often have to play the hand we're dealt. Of course, that can be a great opportunity for a photographer to see what is or isn't feasible in the toughest conditions - very low light (with repeated heavy showers) and animals which might be enclosed behind reflective rain-splattered glass. Practice always brings us closer to the results we want to achieve, so photograph your friends pets, your neighbours pets, whatever appears in your garden, and any other animals you might have the opportunity to see.

So what does this mean in photographic terms? First of all most animals move and I'd like to get a shutter speed of at least 1/200 of a second for slow moving animals, and in an ideal world around 1/1000 for fast moving species. In dark conditions this is completely impossible, and you'll soon reach the limit of ISO and aperture - in the end I was shooting at anything from 1/15 of a second to 1/60 if I was lucky - and at ISO 1200 - and at f2.8. The risks then are blurred shots due to subject movement, noise from high ISO settings, and very shallow DOF at wide f stops. Oh - and don't forget the reflections off glass if the animals have to be contained in this way, and the fact that accurate focus is difficult and often impossible in low light, not to mention through physical barriers. All in all, it isn't always certain if any worthwhile shots will result, but the trick is 'shoot many to keep a few' and of course, the aim is to have fun. I don't know anybody who doesn't have a big smile on their face after shooting animals, and we are no exception.

The kit comprises a Canon 5D and a Canon 40D, and so that we can travel light we often use just two smallish lenses - the fantastic Tamron 28-75 f2.8, and the highly accomplished Canon 70-300 f3.5-5.6 IS. For a few hundred pounds each, these lenses have near 'L' quality optics.

 

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New Year's Day at Brooklands Museum

A fellow Pistonheads member has just reminded me about the wonderful New Year's Day event at Brooklands Museum. This really is something very special, with visitors from all over the country bringing their rare, vintage, or exotic vehicles to what is the most perfect setting. Brooklands is a museum both indoors and out - you'll notice the old aeroplanes dotted about - these lend so much character and interest to the day.

I realised that I had a set of pictures from this year's event, so I'm posting them rather late in the day, but hopefully they'll give you a flavour of what you can expect if you do decide to get up early on 1st January 2010.

I wasn't in the mood to lug around a bag of pro kit on this occasion - all the shots were taken with my old but much loved miniature handbag camera. I always try to carry a little point-and-shoot with me, just in case.

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Bodiam Castle

Bodiam Castle in East Sussex is an imposing and forbidding place. It was build in 1385 for the purpose of defending the surrounding area from French invaders, political enemies, civil unrest, and plague. It's also exquisitely proportioned and very beautiful, the quadrangular design being of French origin, and well suited to the incarceration of wealthy dignitaries (made popular following the collapse of some banks).

When we arrived the skies were dark and heavy, and the odd spit of rain heralded some afternoon downpours. Luckily it doesn't take long to walk around the moated building, and to visit the ruined interior, with its various chambers and archways. The moat itself is well populated with very tame ducks - their size and robust health is a testament to the attention they receive from visitors, and this is even more entertaining in the summer months, when the enormous carp who also live in the moat come to the surface to compete for the tidbits the visitors throw to them. I've seen some terrible squabbles, but the carp take the pecks and kicks from the ducks on the chin and everyone seems happy. The carp are quite huge and I understand they were rescued from a warm water outflow close to a power plant, and transported to Bodiam to live happily thereafter.

My assistant is far braver than I am, and made it onto the battlements - I'm the tiny speck on the ground:

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