An interesting subject is needed for any photograph, but even the most interesting wild animal won’t make for a good photo if your composition is not compelling. Over time you will learn to train yourself to analyze a scene and take everything into consideration. – your point of view – backgrounds – foregrounds – lighting – body positioning of the animal.

To help illustrate what I am talking about I am going to take a look at two different landings that we conducted on my recent workshops in Antarctica. I want to illustrate all the compositional decisions I was presented, but more importantly, how I photographed these scenarios.

The first series of images were taken on one landing. The group was lining up to wait for their zodiacs when a light snow started to fall. To our left, one lone Adelie Penguin stood seaside on dark rocks. The falling snow added a pretty element to the image.

The accompanying elements are all things that I had to consider:

The line of penguins in the backgrounds.
The sea that was in front if the Adelie.
The falling snow
The undulating rocky shoreline.
Most important, the Adelie Penguin.

I took a series of images that incorporated all of these elements to show you how each element changed the photo. While all the images offer a different look at the same animal, each image had me getting down on my knees to photograph the penguin at eye level and making sure my focus was on the penguins eyes. Above all else, the most important compositional elements that I wanted to make sure I captured were:

I wanted to photograph the penguin at eye level.
I wanted to make sure I had focus on the eyes of the penguin.
I wanted to make sure there was enough negative space around the penguin that the falling snow would be visible against the dark rocks.

Nikon D850, Sigma 150-600 f5-6.3, Shutter speed of 1/1100th of a second, Aperture of ƒ9.5, ISO400, EV Comp at +2/3

In the photo above I included both the penguins in the background, and the shoreline below and to the right of the Adelie. I decided on an aperture that would blur out the penguins in the background, but still gave me enough depth of field to have the penguin and the shoreline in focus. The out of focus backgrounds are still identifiable but they do not distract from where I wanted you to look – the lone penguin in the foreground.

This photo if a good example of placing a penguin in its environment. The penguin is still an imposing figure, but you get a sense of the entire area in which I was photographing. This would be a good photo to show people at home that did not make the journey with me. It gives them a sense of what the environment looks like.

In this image, I decided to crop a little tighter. The penguins in the background are eliminated, but you still see the shoreline. This photo still offers a sense of place but puts more emphasis on the penguin and its immediate surroundings.

I still used the same aperture of ƒ9.5 to keep the foreground and penguin in focus, and the slightly blurred backgrounds help to keep focus where I wanted you to look – on the penguin.

In this image I went a little tighter. All the additional elements are eliminated except for falling snow. I am left with a nice side portrait of a Penguin with a little snowflake resting on the beak. I actually waited for that one lone snowflake to drop on the penguins beak to add a small element that would evoke a happy emotion in you.

I then went in very tight and turned my camera vertical. I then waited for a new head position where I could capture both eyes in an image. Notice the different placement of the penguin? He is looking over his shoulder. It’s as if he is looking back towards the negative space on the left.

Taking a vertical image is something I never forget to do. I urge you to always take a few vertical images as they tend to capture a scene differently.

I walked away with four distinct looking photos from a ten minute shoot while waiting in line for my zodiac. Never be satisfied with just a single image. Experiment with different focal lengths and camera positioning. Wait till you have them on a computer screen before you go and delete anything.

This second set of images are all photos taken of Gentoo Penguins on a few landings in the South Shetland Islands. They are a series of images that also offer examples of how to capture an animal in its environment. Individually they are all strong images, but viewed in a series they really tell a story of the day in the life of a Gentoo Penguin.

Nikon D850, Nikon 70-200mm ƒ2.8, Shutter speed of 1/500th of a second, Aperture of ƒ11, ISO200, EV Comp at +1

By placing an animal into a vast landscape like this, a few things need to be present to make it a more compelling image.

1 – Make sure that the entire scene has enough focus so the viewer sees what you saw. I generally will photograph a scene like this anywhere from ƒ11 to ƒ16. Or, I will take two images. One focused on the mountains, the other focused on the penguin. I will then take both these images and merge them so I have sharp focus front to back.

2 – Make sure your animal is in focus. It also helps to have the animal looking out over the scene like this photo. You could have it looking at you, or you could have it looking out towards the scene. You identify with the penguin in my photo, and sense the scale of the environment.

Nikon D850, Sigma 150-600 f5-6.3, Shutter speed of 1/1600th of a second, Aperture of ƒ7.1, ISO400, EV Comp at +1

I still wanted to place a penguin in its environment with this image. But I wanted a photo on a smaller scale. By getting really low to the water I was able to photograph from the penguins eye level. It created a much better Point-of-View and brings you into the scene.

I did not want the backgrounds to be in focus. It would have distracted from the penguin. I did not want your eyes bouncing back and forth. The eye sees the sharpness, and subconsciously you know exactly where to look.

The penguin was walking around on that floating ice. I took a series of images. What I wanted to capture was some sort of body positioning that showed the penguin was moving around. The snow that is in the air near its feet, and the extended flipper shows you there was movement.

Nikon D850, Sigma 150-600 f5-6.3, Shutter speed of 1/2000th of a second, Aperture of ƒ8.0, ISO800

I am always on the look out for an unusual point-of-view and an animal that is doing something that people don’t always see. During a landing in Antarctica I noticed Gentoo Penguins doing something fun. They looked like they were skiing and using their flippers as a way to turn as they sled down the hill on their bellies.

We stood there and watched the colony go up and down the hill before we chose a location to take our photos. We noticed that at one section of the hill they did a sharp turn to their right before they went down to the water. If we laid on the ground we would have a low POV right up their ski hill with the falling snow around them.

I wanted to capture the moment when they used their flipper to turn. But I also wanted to make sure I had sharp eyes. To ensure I had the needed depth of field I set the camera to ƒ8.0 to increase the adept of field. I waited for the Penguin to approach the area where they turned. As soon as they got close I would take a burst of images as they turned the corner. It took 5 or 6 penguins to capture the image I wanted. A photo from a low POV of a penguin turning using his flipper as a rudder as the snow fell above him. Notice the placement of the Penguin. It is placed on the right of the image so there is the appearance of empty space for the penguin to move into.

Nikon D850, Sigma 150-600 f5-6.3, Shutter speed of 1/2000th of a second, Aperture of ƒ7.1, ISO400

While I was in Antarctica I wanted to capture a series of photos that speak to the life of a penguin. Fishing and swimming is one of those things that penguins are constantly doing. You can watch a penguin colony all day and there will never be a shortage of photo opportunities that shows penguins going in and out of the water.

On this landing they were walking out into the surf. Most of them would enter the water and quickly dive under. On occasion I noticed a few adventurous penguins that enjoyed walking out into the surf and ride the waves. This penguin would wait for an approaching wave and jump over them like a kid that didn’t want the cold water touching his head and shoulders.

I chose to wait for a wave and capture the penguin leaping. The resulting photo was a fun image of a penguin leaping over a wave.

Conclusion

Remember, regardless of the composition you choose to photograph, your job as a photographer is to capture all the available information in such a way that each image is attractive. I am sure you will find that there is as much failure as success, but unless you click that shutter, you will never know. Most important of all is to remember that it doesn’t matter what kind of photo you take. You still were gifted with the opportunity to have an intimate encounter - and that is something you should never take for granted.

If you would like more wildlife photography tips you would enjoy my new eBook, “Wildlife Photography – Five Key Elements for Success”. You can download this 88 page book by visiting my eBook page.

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