Photo-Africa Guest Post

The Following Post was published today on Gerry van der Walt's Website: Photo-Africa http://www.photo-africa.com/

Article – Making the most of Composition and Chance

When I was asked by Gerry to be a contributor in his Thursday Guest Post slot, a multitude of ideas and images and went racing through my head. Actually sitting down and choosing the few that may have some value to talk about was probably a harder task than sitting down to write this post. How do you add value to a Site that has had so many established and acclaimed Wildlife Photographers as contributors? How do you choose 10 to 12 images out of tens of thousands?

Initially I had decided to focus on Leopards as my Subject, the main reason being that, currently, I am in the long and laborious process of scanning old slide images to digital files, and I decided to start with the library of Leopard Images that I have accumulated over the years.

Following a mere 2 weeks after Brendon Cremers Leopard Post, I thought it better if I added a few other images to use as examples to highlight certain tips, and ideas when trying to establish how to be creative in composition.

The first two images that came to mind when starting to compose my article were these 2 leopard Images.

The Young Leopard in the Marula Tree was a treasure trove of potential images on this particular day. I snapped away merrily while he was peering across a plain at his retreating Mother, as she was going to hunt for the evening. Such a vulnerable position to be in when you get left on your own to survive the night, with Lions and Hyaenas in the area, was me and my guests thought at the scene presented before us.

Each image that I take, should tell a story, and when I looked up quickly from my camera after adjusting some settings, I had to take 2 looks to see the cub. With the late afternoon setting sun, accentuating rich red colours, he started blending in with the textures created by the Bark of the tree, and I then had the intention of getting an image of the youngster, against the backdrop of the bark, with no profile visible against the sky.

This image to me represents not only the beauty of nature, but the sometimes mind boggling camouflage that is presented where least expected. The texture contrast between the Rosettes of the fur, and the mottled bark of the tree was a goal that I set out to achieve. What makes this an appealing image, further to the above mentioned ideas, was the drooping paw, adding a point of reference, balancing the head out to a certain degree. The youngsters head has also been placed in the left of the frame, giving him space to look into. This space I attempted to accentuate by composing a visually pleasing diagonal line between the Bark and the Sky. The uncluttered blue sky then creates the perception of more empty space, leaving one to guess what the intent of the stare into the distance may hide. Getting more technical, the appeal of the image also has a further, almost hidden composition element. The diagonal of the bark and the sky separation, is almost mirrored by the diagonal of the leg and paw, dividing the image into three portions.

The above image is a similar image to the first, and I have included it, again, to highlight the value of the visible paw in balancing an image. By including the paw, in a Landscape format rather than Portrait, I was also able to include the branch of the Silver Cluster Leaf tree, dividing the frame diagonally. A fairly shallow depth of field also served to blur the back tangle of branches, that could have been distracting to the eye had a aperture of f11 or more been chosen. The most appealing feature to me regarding this image, was the colours and contrast. My style, which is not chosen, but just comes naturally, has been described by many as very “contrasty”. The rich deep colours of the late setting sun were helped by the red tinges on her face and neck, from feeding on a Duiker, that I have not included in this composition. The dark bark, and blue sky behind helped create pleasing vivid colour contrasts. Typical of Velvia 100 Slide Film. Never to be ignored, is the value of the Catchlight in the eye or eyes, as can be seen in both the discussed images so far.

In the previous paragraph I have mentioned Depth of Field. Short of having to write a book explaining DOF to everyone, I will just highlight the value of a shallow Depth Of Field by including the Above image. A shallow depth of field, allows one to capture your intended subject in crisp clear focus, with the focus getting blurred rapidly into the background. No elements are thus distracting to the eye, and a person will thus focus and appreciate more intently the intended subject. Admittedly though, f2.8 lenses are very expensive, and to those who cannot afford one, me included, a photographer needs to be creative in attempting the said shot. This female Leopard was atop a termite mound, and being able to place myself near the bottom, I was able to change the angle of composition, which included the vegetation in the background, a whole valley distant. At f 6.3, the distance to the background vegetation allowed the illusion of using a very shallow DOF to get the shot. The light was perfect, as was the foreground, which was uncluttered, and the final element was the visible catchlights in the eyes of the subject.

Dark Backgrounds help the image POP sometimes, by this I mean, help the image stand out from the rest of the image including both foregrounds and backgrounds. Composing the above Yawning leopard against a very dark backdrop, helped accentuate the now very visible white whiskers. These can sometimes melt into a brighter backdrop, and the impact alot less noted. An almost 3d effect has been created by placing yourself in a position, to capture your subject against a dark background. No catchlight is visible here, but there is enough action to satisfy me, seeing the open mouth, raspy tongue, bared teeth, and the already mentioned whiskers.

Another example, this time with the help of a shaft of early morning rising sunlight, is a female leopard that I was following across a plain one morning. She had been walking through a thick tree forest, on the edge of the plain, when she stopped in the middle of a patch where the sun’s rays fell directly onto her. Trying always to be prepared, I raised the camera and shot away. She stood for about a minute before moving away, but in that Minute I had captured about 20 images. The most pleasing was this one, where my colours were just as I had intended, emphasising her Golden colour in the sun, contrasting with the shadowy fore, and backgrounds. The textures of the long grass also helped in aiding with the concept that she is blending in to her environment, and I specifically chose to exclude more space on the bottom of the image, as I wanted her legs to simply vanish into the darker vegetation.

The last example in this particular series, is the reflection shot of the drinking Male Leopard. Here a Landscape orientation was necessitated by the posture of the drinking leopard, and especially his curling tale. A shaft of early morning light illuminated this subject against the dark areas of the mud, vegetation, and water, making for pleasing colours and contrasts. Thankfully it was a still morning, and capturing a reflection was possible, this is what ultimately makes this image into something worth sharing.

Creating a mood, and capturing the essence of an animal does not always mean photographing the animal itself. Leopards are by reputation, shy, secretive, elusive. Sometimes described as Phantoms. After the Sand River had flowed, and the water receded, the canvass of sand was left pristine. Stopping to track a male leopard, I noticed the tracks heading down the river bed. The above image is an attempt to highlight the nature of the animal that I have already described. Visible tracks, in typical environment that leopards tend to be found in. The tracks lead to a central point, the water, getting more and more out of focus as they proceed further away. No visible track lead away from the water, and it would appear that the Leopard had simply vanished into thin air after quenching his thirst at the water pool. This mystical property is what I have attempted to impart on the subject, even though no Leopard features in the frame itself.

Sometimes we get so side tracked by trying to place ourselves with the sun behind us, in order to have great light on our subjects, that we tend to miss great chances. The composition of the following 2 images are an attempt by me to convince you all that you have to be receptive to a variety of different environmental factors when attempting to get great shots. I had been taking pictures of this leopard cub high up in a tree, with 3 Hyaenas beneath him, when I turned to the sun to see how much light I had left to take pictures. That’s when it struck me, the light was so low because the sun was dull from all the smoke and dust in the air. Knowing that lens flare would not be a problem, I repositioned to include a silhouette of the tree, Leopard Cub, and the Setting Sun behind the Drakensberg Mountain Range in the distance. Taking a light reading from the brightest part of the sun, and then setting the automatic exposure lock, I took the above moody image. I moved a long way away from the subject to get the right composition, but in the end, when the developed slides were returned I was overjoyed at the result. To me it again told a story, of a long and lonely night that awaited the Leopard, perched atop his isolated and Lonely tree stump. A metaphor to the state of Nature and the Natural world can also be created, with the sun setting, the end coming, unless us as humans can change our ways and do the necessary work to conserve.

Another example of breaking the rules and taking photos into the sun, as a further example, is the image of the rhinos, with the setting sun directly behind them. The sun’s rays and colours really helped a usually mundane subject, be transformed into a visually pleasing image, simply with the addition of great light. We need to think out of the box, and go against the grain when attempting to create art.

Light is one of the most important factors when taking photos in the natural environment. I must stress however that Light is by no means essential to taking great images. The Warthog in its Burrow is a prime example. Here, in a steep valley in the Waterberg, I came across this old boar waiting for things to heat up before he emerged to forage for the day. The sun had not yet crept over the ridge above us, and light was not going to be an element in capturing his portrait. Sometimes shadows or a lack of light, help improve your image by making more detail visible in the subject and its surrounds. This Warthog has been framed nicely by the round hole of the burrow in which it is located, and this adds a pleasing visual element to the final image.
LUCK

After all I have said already, we need to remember that ultimately, the greatest treat is often based on luck. These are the opportunities and chances that do not come along too often, and to get a chance to take unusual images, that may not have been photographed before, is the holy grail of Wildlife Photography. I think at this stage, of a series of Images I saw of Gerry’s a week or so ago, of mud covered Lions, pitch black in appearance, with only the eyes really still natural in colour. You need to be ready at all times to capture these strange scenes.
The unusual subject matter, or environment, will often get the awe filled response that you as a Wildlife Photographer crave when showcase your images, or simply when you treat yourself to your own slide show.

2 Examples of the above are portrayed in the attached images of the Python swallowing a Wildebeest Calf, and the Leopard Cubs hiding away in a storm water drain running under a road in the Manyeleti Game Reserve.

What makes these images, is nothing regarding the: technical ability of the photographer, the composition, the colours or the light. Their appeal, is from the unusual circumstances at the time of taking the photos. Capturing, and saving a point in time that will not be repeated let alone captured too often in the future.

As Gary Player said “ The harder I practice, the luckier I get.”

We can apply that to our journey as Wildlife Photographers, and continue to strive for something different, something unique, the trick is to keep at it, and never be unprepared for the shot.