Wildlife and bird photography made easy

Name: Wildlife and bird photography made easy
Rating: 4.8 (40 reviews)

Your hands-on guide to composing, shooting and editing wildlife and bird photographs - no matter what your skill level.

Created byNic van Oudtshoorn ARPS

Last updated 10/2024

English

What you'll learn

Explore what makes a good wildlife and bird photograph.
How to select and use the right equipment for wildlife and bird photography.
Apply a range of techniques, including composition, exposure and depth of field, to capture great wildlife and bird photos in an ethical manner..
Basic editing techniques, including cropping, color adjustment and sharpening, to create photos with impact.

Course content

1 section • 40 lectures • 3h 27m total length

Introduction4:51
Explores the content of the course to let you know what you can achieve after completing it.
What makes a good wildlife and bird photograph?5:51
We look at the five pillars that combine to make a good picture.
Test yourself
Creating great compositions - Part 14:07
There are many tools to help us create great compositions. We start with the Rule of Thirds.
Test yourself
Creating great compositions =- Part 26:46
We explore more aids to help us create great compositions.
Composition - Part 2
Creating great compositions -- Part 37:28
Frame the subject to isolate it and guide the eye with frames, symmetry, and patterns; use depth of field and negative space to add depth and emphasis.
Test yourself
What camera for wildlife and bird photography?3:08
Explore the gear options for wildlife and bird photography by comparing dslr and mirrorless cameras, leveraging interchangeable lenses, and using advanced phones with telephoto zoom.
Test your knowledge
Sensor size -- what's best for wildlife and bird photography7:16
Check your progress
Other useful camera features2:38
Master wildlife and bird photography by using burst mode to capture fast movements and leveraging features like remote release, app control, GPS tagging, and HDMI live view.
Test yourself
Telephoto lenses5:25
Learn how telephoto lenses extend reach for wildlife and birds by exploring focal length, magnification, and depth of field, and compare prime versus zoom lenses with apertures and teleconverters.
Test yourself
Teleconverters3:42
Teleconverters extend your lens reach for wildlife and bird photography by 1.4x or 2x, but reduce light, lower aperture, can hinder autofocus, and affect sharpness and background blur.
Teleconverter quiz
Wide-angle lenses and stabilizers2:47
Check your knowledge
Electronic flash4:36
Learn how to use electronic flash to illuminate wildlife and birds, control shadows with TTL and high speed sync, and choose compact, long-lasting gear, including off-camera options and accessories.
Test your knowledge
Tripod and oher camera supports6:37
Test yourself
Gimbals and fluid heads3:58
Explore gimbals and fluid heads for wildlife photography, balancing your camera on an Arca-Swiss setup for smooth, cinema-quality panning of birds in flight and fast wildlife.
Test yourself
Exposure metering4:08
Learn how exposure metering guides camera settings for wildlife and bird photography by using evaluative, center-weighted, partial, and spot modes. Balance aperture, shutter speed, and ISO to capture proper exposure.
Test your knowledge
The Exposure triangle4:48
Test yourself
Exploiting depth of field4:35
Discover how depth of field in wildlife and bird photography is shaped by subject distance, lens focal length, and aperture, with ranges like f2.8–f5.6 for blur and f8–f16.
Test your knowledge
Shutter speed and ISO3:10
Check your knowledge
Getting the best image quality2:18
Choose raw for the best image quality, optionally with raw+JPEG for quick checks, then edit raw in Photoshop or Lightroom to preserve sensor data and the 12-14 bit tonal range.
Test yourself
Mode dial options3:03
Explore the mode dial options, from auto and program to aperture and shutter priority, manual, scene, and custom modes. Use custom C modes to tailor settings for wildlife shooting.
Test yourself
Best mode settings for wildlife and birds6:15
Test yourself
Fine tuning exposure8:23
Test your knowledge
Making the most from the histogram5:12
Explore how a histogram reveals exposure, contrast, and dynamic range, identify underexposed and overexposed areas, and use highlights or whites sliders and blinkies to achieve well-exposed wildlife and bird photos.
Test your knowledge
Autofocus Part 14:10
Master autofocus for wildlife photography by using single and continuous AF, subject tracking, and eye detection, with tips for low light and quick movements.
Test yourself
Autofocus Part 24:26
Learn how to use back button focus to separate focusing from taking the shot, and select effective autofocus points for reliable wildlife and bird photography.
Test your knowledge
Front and side lighting7:22
Test yourself
Back lighting6:26
Test your knowledge
Top lighting3:18
Navigate top lighting challenges in wildlife and bird photography around noon, and learn fill flash, polarizing and graduated neutral density filters, shooting in raw, and editing with Adobe Camera Raw.
Test yourself
High Dynamic Range (HDR) lighting6:36
Use HDR to capture a wider luminance by taking 3–5 bracketed exposures on a tripod and merging them to preserve detail from shadows to highlights.
Test yourself
Using flash - Part 15:38
Test your knowledge
Using flash - Part 23:59
Test yourself
Getting the shot6:28
Test yourself
Wildlife and bird portraits6:05
Capture close-up wildlife portraits that reveal beauty, personality, and emotion through candid moments. Experiment with angles, lighting, backgrounds, and focal lengths to convey the subject's character.
Test yourself
Bagging a bird (or two)6:57
Explore practical bird photography techniques, from local knowledge and hides to fast shutter speeds, manual exposure with auto iso, tracking with autofocus, and compelling composition.
Test your knowledge
Bird breeding seasons6:06
Shooting whales and dolphins6:36
Capture whales and dolphins in coastal habitats using long lenses (300mm+), fast shutter speeds, and boat or shore setups, while observing safety and regulations.
Test yourself
Do's and dont's - ethics of wildlife and bird photography3:12
Photograph wildlife and birds ethically by maintaining safe distances, being patient, avoiding disturbance, respecting nesting sites, and using long lenses with permits when required.
Test your knowledge
Editing - turn a photo into a stunner7:11
Learn essential wildlife photo editing using Adobe Camera Raw and Photoshop, adjusting exposure, white balance, color, and sharpness, cropping for composition, and removing distractions before saving as tiff.
Fixing problem shots6:39
Learn how to fix problem wildlife shots by cropping, reducing noise, and sharpening with Adobe Camera Raw, Photoshop, Topaz Photo AI, and Gigapixel AI.
HDR editing techniques5:01
Merge three bracketed exposures into a high dynamic range image in Photoshop with HDR Pro, then align, remove ghosts, and fine-tune exposure, color, vibrance, texture, and sharpening in Camera Raw.

Requirements

A digital single lens reflex (DSLR) or mirrorless camera is preferred, but you can also use a fixed-lens camera with a lens that can zoom. A basic knowledge of your camera's functions is an advantage but not essential as we cover every aspect of wildlife and bird photography.

Description

Featuring around 500 "how to" as well as “How NOT to” photographs and video clips, the course guides you, step-by-step, through every aspect of wildlife and bird photography. It's packed with tips and tricks that will prove invaluable to any photographer, no matter what your skill level.

Wildlife and bird photography demands the right equipment, as well as an intimate knowledge of how to use your camera, lenses and other attachments, often under difficult conditions. We guide you how to select the most suitable and cost effective equipment, including tripods and other camera supports. If all this sounds expensive, don't worry. We help you save money by adapting and modifying equipment you already own.

Good composition is also vitally important for creating memorable photos. We look in detail at the many techniques available for composing wildlife and bird photos, from the Rule of Thirds to frames and lines. We also look in detail at how to utilize depth of field to make your subjects stand out. Then we examine how you can crop and fine-tune your images using sophisticated computer software, including creating High Dynamic Range (HDR) photos.

Complete this course and you'll know just what to do to produce animal and bird photos you'll be proud to hang on the wall.

Nic van Oudtshoorn is a multi-award winning photographer, including Abstract Professional Photographer of the Year in the prestigious international 2024 reFocus World Photo Annual competition, competing against photographers from more than 60 countries.

Who this course is for:

At the end of this course, you will be able to compose and photograph interesting wildlife and bird photos, then process them on your computer for maximum quality and impact.