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Most zoos are open year round and when the weather

Most zoos are open year round and when the weather turns chilly, let's head inside. This Toco Toucan at the St Louis Zoo was showing off his wonderful beak and beautiful bright eye for me. Remember that moving from the cold temperature to the warm interior of a building can cause water vapor to codense on our equipment, especially our lens.

I recommend leaving your gear in your bag from your car to the building to avoid this happening. Going to the buildings first and then going outside will eliminate this problem. If like me, you forget and things do fog up, don't waste time wiping it right away. Just be patient and let the equipment adjust to the inside temperature first. Then if you still have fogging, you can clean it off.

While the cold weather will keep some people away

While the cold weather will keep some people away from the zoo, some animals have adapted to the cold weather nicely. This large raptor, the cinereous vulture, seems to be very comfortable in cooler temperatures. Their natural habitat is a huge range throughout Eurasia, and they can migrate for long distances. But what I'm impressed with is their sheer size. Growing up to 25-30 lbs and some having wingspans of 10ft is just majestic. Those massive wings allow them to fly at very high altitudes.⁣
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Be patient when photographing these guys. Their alert eyes will find you and I love photos showing them staring down the camera lens. ⁣
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Notice how the tree is out of focus and frames our subject. Shallow depth of field makes it easy to capture our subject and separate him from the tree in the foreground and the background.

I've been distracted from posting zoo photos by th

I've been distracted from posting zoo photos by this little guy. We got a new puppy named Banjo and he is so dang cute. Check out his adventures over at @banjo.cavedog I had forgotten how much effort a new puppy takes. I've been in my back yard more in the last 3 weeks than I have been in the last 3 years. I'm so lucky to have found this guy and have him join the family.

We have had him for 3 weeks today and I'm getting more sleep now, so I can return to posting zoo photos and tips.

Male lion at the Denver Zoo taking advantage of th

Love photographing lions with strong light that li

Love photographing lions with strong light that lights up their mane. Strong side light or back light really shows up the texture. This big guy at the @Denverzoo is posing perfectly in this light. Be aware of the light and use it to get different types of photos of the same subject.

You know how much I like photographing flamingos. Their color, long limbs and numerous textures just make them wonderful subjects. Try getting them from all distances. We can photograph them from many distances and using different lens to capture their variety. Have fun experimenting with these birds.

Red Pandas are just the cutest animals around and

Red Pandas are just the cutest animals around and their walk is so distinctive the way they waddle. This exhibit at the @okczoo gives the animals plenty of room to move about and provides plenty of angles to position yourself to get a nice shot of them coming toward you. Patience is very important here to get the photo you want to get. Take your time to watch them move about and find locations where you can anticipate the pose you want.

Hog Island Boa at the @TheOmahaZoo has a wonderful

Hog Island Boa at the @TheOmahaZoo has a wonderful exhibit that allows you to move all around it to get different angles and compositions of this beautiful snake. When shooting in low light we typically use a wide open aperture that makes for some very shallow depth of field. Notice in the first shot how the shallow depth of field allows the tongue and nose to be in focus, but the eyes are soft and out of focus. In the 2nd shot, I've moved to the side and now the entire head is the same distance from the camera and in focus. Which photo do you like better?

Arrgh, it's Monday again. After a weekend of phot

Arrgh, it's Monday again. After a weekend of photography, Mondays are a great time to go through and organize your gear. Charge those batteries, format your memory cards and repack your camera bag so you are ready to go on your next adventure. Check all your equipment to make sure it is in good working order. Things can get knocked around and get loose when out and about. Check out everything now so you can adjust, clean or repair before you are headed out the door.

Love this camel's facial expression here at the St

Love this camel's facial expression here at the St Louis Zoo. But what really makes this photo is how the light highlights the fine strands of hair and really separates him from the background. It's always important for us to be aware of our lighting on our subjects. This light is behind and to the side of this camel. The backlighting creates this rim light that highlights the hair. Be careful in these situations that the camera doesn't underexpose the subject's face. Use the exposure compensation dial on your camera to find the right balance.

Green Tree Python has beautiful eyes and wonderful

Green Tree Python has beautiful eyes and wonderful texture of its scales. These low light exhibits force the photographer to use a multitude of techniques to get sharp photos. A couple of tips are to make sure the glass is clean, the camera is held against the glass to minimize glare and to provide an additional point of stability. Focus and aperture choices are important to make sure the part of the image you want in focus is sharp. I always want the subject's eye to be in sharp focus, but here we also got the nose and front coil of scales in focus.

Backgrounds matter! Here is a flamingo at the @sa

Backgrounds matter! Here is a flamingo at the @sandiegozoo against a soft background that allows the subject to stand out. What allows it to stand out? ⁣
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Color - The contrasting color of the greens vs the bright color of the flamingo. ⁣
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Brightness - The foliage of the background is darker than the subject. Our eyes are drawn to the bright objects in our photos. ⁣
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Focus - The subject is in sharp focus against a softly out of focus background. ⁣
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All 3 of these things help the subject pop and the background stays in the background. While adding to the photo it isn't subtracting from the subject. Move around and watch your backgrounds to help your subjects stand out.

When photographing baby / young animals it's nice

When photographing baby / young animals it's nice to have them with their parent or full sized adult for comparison. If the little one is the only animal in the photo, then how do we tell it is small?

Mandrills like this one at the @DenverZoo are dist

Mandrills like this one at the @DenverZoo are distinctive with their bright colors. They are the largest of the monkeys and they are wonderful photography subjects with the bright colors and variety of textures. I've always recommended carrying a cloth to clean off smudges from the glass on exhibits to get clean photos. Now to be extra careful we should also carry hand sanitizer and a spray sanitizer to use before and after we touch anything. Let's be safe out there.

Today the @sdzsafaripark announced that some of th

Today the @sdzsafaripark announced that some of their gorillas have tested positive for the virus. Let's keep these magnificent animals and the wonderful staff in our prayers. ⁣
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#zoo #zoophototips #gorilla #zoophotography #photography #animalphotos #photographytips #zoophoto #olympus #olympusomd #omdem1markii #getolympus⁣
#sdzsafaripark #sandiegozoo⁣
@sandiegozoo

This cute red panda at the @stlzoo feels the same

This cute red panda at the @stlzoo feels the same way about Mondays as I do. I really enjoyed the St Louis Zoo and the red pandas exhibit was so convenient for the visitors. It had so much room for the red pandas to roam about. Hint here is to move your feet at this exhibit to get the best shots. There is so much space to move about. Try all the different angles to make sure you are getting a great background behind your subject. I really liked how open it was with no barriers between you and your subject. ⁣
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Oh and did I mention this zoo is free and situated in a lovely park. Can't wait to go back.

The San Diego Zoo and the Safari Park are both clo

The San Diego Zoo and the Safari Park are both closed now due to COVID, but I'll be back when they open. #countingthedays⁣
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The Tiger Trail exhibit at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park is great for both the tigers and the visitors. When I was there, two keepers were training this tiger by having him run from one side of the enclosure to the other. Back and forth to get some exercise and to train with the keepers. I was able to stand directly behind the keeper as the tiger was running back to her. Keep your camera on continuous autofocus so that the tiger remains in focus as he moves toward you.

This North American Porcupine is very interactive

This North American Porcupine is very interactive with the keepers at @CheyenneMountainZoo. Demonstrations and keeper talks are a great time to get good zoo photos. The animals are active and engaged so they provide the opportunity for nice photos. I know that many zoos are limiting the larger demostrations because it is impossible to keep social distancing in place, but keep your eyes open for keepers to do impromptu engagements with the animals. It keeps the animals active and can provide a great shot for you. I don't recommend stalking the keepers as they walk around the zoo,......but be aware if you see some getting ready near an exhibit.

Komodo dragon at the @denverzoo posing for the cam

Komodo dragon at the @denverzoo posing for the camera. Get down low at eye level to get a great portrait of your subject. I used some cheap knee pads to protect my knees and make it comfortable while waiting on him to turn and look at me. Being comfortable allows us to be patient, so dress appropriately and use knee pads or a stool to make yourself comfortable.

Koala could not make up its mind if it wanted to e

Koala could not make up its mind if it wanted to eat or sleep. This was early in the morning and it was trying to do both. We got lucky this morning as the keepers were feeding them when we arrived early. The @sandiegozoo is one of my favorites. They are forced closed now, but you can support them on their website with a donation or purchasing something from their gift shop. Check out your zoo's website to see how you can support them. What methods are your zoos using to raise money for the animals?

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