Finding stories in the field

As wildlife photographers we usually, if not always, look for a story to tell through our images. In fact, you’ve probably been told many times that a good wildlife photograph has a story behind it. But what does that even mean? In simple terms a wildlife photograph with a story is a photograph that has meaning, they do not just simply show the animal. Photographs like these are often more towards the creative side and can have a huge range of styles and compositions. You must decide how you compose and what style you’re going with when you take photos like these. However, before you can even start photographing you have to find a story.

This image captures the patient waiting of a Kingfisher for a fish to pass by.

In this one the story is rather sarcastic where this male ostrich is dispalying his heart out but the female doesn't seem impressed.

 Stories in images come from great understanding about the environment and wildlife you’re shooting but also a great deal of technical photographic knowledge. Combining both and knowing how to interpret certain behaviours and environmental phenomena, such as weather, is what makes these types of images stand out from the rest. However, this is not easy and finding a story in the field can be a bit more complicated than it seems, but there are a couple of ways to simplify the process.  

Firstly, when you arrive at a photographic opportunity do not just start photographing immediately. Take some time to study the behaviours and really notice what is happening around you. This will enable you to pick up small changes in the dynamics between individuals or interactions between animals and their environment. When this happens, you must be ready with the settings to capture the moment! Interactions might include a leopard scratching a tree, a group of impalas watching carefully as a lion is walking in the distance, or simply the contrast of a fragile butterfly sitting on the tough skin of an elephant. These all tell a story and can have a huge impact on how the viewer experiences the animal and its surroundings in the photograph.

This photograph features a clear action and contrast, the one cormrant is very confident while the other a bit more laid back and this might even raise a feeling of the one being a bit of a bully.

It is also important to consider the weather conditions. A nice dark cloudy sky could make for extremely dramatic wide shots, rain can also have a dramatic effect, especially when the sun peeks out from the clouds while it is still raining. For rain get your shutter speed lower to about 1/50^th to get nice streaks, but make sure your background is dark and your subject is not moving. Sunset or sunrise can make for some cool silhouettes or rim lighting. It is good to experiment with different conditions to see what effects they could give. Another condition that is often overlooked is very hot conditions with heat haze. Although this ruins sharpness completely, a very wide shot of something like an Oryx in the Kalahari shows the viewer how amazingly these animals are adapted to living in the heat.  

This high key image has a lot of heat haze but it adds to the story and gives information about the conditions these zebras live in.

As mentioned above the environment and behaviour of wildlife are one of the most important factors in telling a story but technical camera skill is what enables you to get the images. Its not just about using the right settings but knowing how to use them to enhance effects and achieve a certain result that will help to tell the story. Slow shutter photography is a great way to emphasise movement and can be done in a few ways. Panning is done by moving the camera at the same speed in which an animal is moving. This will create streaks in the background, but it is important to note that you will need to take loads of shots to get one where the subject is sharp. To get an even more abstract image you can experiment by physically moving the camera to achieve a blurred image, this can be applied to animals who are either moving or not moving. A good shutter speed for slow shutter photography is 1/10^th of a second. This varies a lot though so experimenting with different shutter speeds is good. Low key images can be achieved by shooting an illuminated subject against dark background and using a high shutter speed and low ISO to get the image even darker.

High key which is the exact opposite uses a lower shutter speed, low f and higher ISO. High key images should be shot during well-lit conditions and can be edited to further enhance the whites in the image.