what is animal photography? how can i become an animal photographer??
TRANSCRIPT
Careers in Photography:Animal Photography
Haley RidgewayMr. Salley
Photo 2 Period 2
What is Animal Photography?
Animal Photography is the type of photography where the photographer captures the image of
an animal.
The animal can be wild or a pet or big or small
It is important to make sure that the lighting is tolerable for the animal but also enough light to
actually see it, so the photographer must be very careful- especially if the animal is wild.
How can I become an animal photographer??
•A two or four year degree in photography• OR degree in zoology with a minor in
photography •Enough education to understand the
importance of animals and photography. •Also understand that the more years of
photographic education, the better jobs you can get and better opportunities to capture wild
animals.
Who will I get to work with? And how can I reach them?
Well depending on what job you get, you can work with a wide variety of animals from a goldfish in your bedroom to a lion in the middle of Africa. So if you want to work more with wild animals, then you should really consider completing 4 years of photography education and get a degree in zoology. Also, you might have to start off doing free lance photography which might eat up all your money.
What materials do I need to become an animal photographer?
• Cameras: Despite the current march towards full frame sensors, the owners of APS-C and Four/Thirds DSLRs have a small advantage here, the crop factor of the smaller
sensors, makes the lenses effectively between 1.5 and 2 times longer than those on full frame. In other words a 300mm on a APS-C sensor will have the equivalent image size of
a 450mm on a full frame camera.• Other factors to consider in your camera body is good low light capability, reasonable continuous shooting speed and a fast and large buffer. The latter will allow more images
to be saved to your card, and quickly.• Lenses: 300mm being a minimum starting point in most cases. If you are on a tight budget, and cannot afford the fast professional lenses (and how many of us can?) then
consider slower zooms but with image stabilization, to help overcome low light situations.• Tripods
-Jason Row
What type of business licenses. Permits and insurance might I need?
Permits/ Licenses :If you want to start a business or create a name for yourself if you want to be a free lance photographer. Just know that if you are choosing to work on your own, it might be difficult to make a living as opposed to working for a National Geographic magazine.
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So what about money?For freelance photography, it is extremely hard to get your name out there and get good business. Freelance photographers spend the days taking pictures on their own to post on their own website (which they pay for) and wait for a client to call to take pictures of their dogs.. It is not recommended to become a freelance wildlife photographer because you will literally spend everything you have in order to pay for a plane ticket to another country.
Now you will make serious bank if you work for the San Diego Zoo or a magazine. Your flights will be paid for and you will have insurance from the company you are working for. Remember, the bigger name of the company, the better income and insurance,.
If I were interested in becoming a wildlife photographer, I would start off freelancing, make it to the zoo, submit photos for a job, then start taking pictures and submitting to the National Geographic Magazine.