The chance of getting a compelling, compositionally pleasing shot of a wild canine is probably the same as the likelihood of getting hit by lightning. They are so shy, so wary, and in constant motion. Even in captivity, it's not easy. I took this picture of a wolf during a summer photo workshop, and I was thrilled to get it. Wolves are full of energy and it seems they rarely stop moving. A pose and an expression like this might last a half second at most, and then it's gone. In a situation like this, the choice of shutter speed is paramount. All other considerations such as lens aperture and ISO are secondary to having a fast enough shutter to freeze the sudden and rapid movements of the animal. My settings here were 1/640, f/9, 400 ISO, and I used a 100-400mm zoom set to 400mm. The minimum shutter required with this lens was 1/400th (the reciprocal of the focal length); I used a faster speed for insurance.
2 Comments
Aug 14, 2018, 8:39:10 PM
Jim - Hi Bryan, Thanks for the compliment. The list of animal I've not photographed is so long there's no point in even considering it. I can tell you what animals are on the top of the list that I really want to photograph, however: golden lion tamarind, galada monkey, mandril, and a loris.
Aug 14, 2018, 5:07:34 PM
Bryan - Jim,
Another nice animal shot.
Do you have a list of animals you haven't shot yet?