Photo of the Day

A pair of lions in the grass
September 25, 2011

White Lions, South Africa

This Month in Photo of the Day: Your Photos With Tips From Photographer Catherine Karnow

Wildlife photography is often about capturing animals in action or in their natural habitat. But shooting portraits of animals—capturing them in much the same way as you would people—can also be an interesting approach. This portrait of the two lions has an almost artificial quality, emphasized by the somewhat shallow depth of field, short focal lens, and fairly flat lighting, as well as by the immediacy of the gaze. Both lions are looking directly into the camera, but it’s the sharp focus of the lion on the right that arrests the viewer. Clearly, the photographer has commanded its attention.

Photo Tip: Think about approaching wildlife photography as portraiture: Use shallow depth of field, a medium focal length lens, and available portrait lighting—and command the direct gaze of the subject.


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Photograph by Dave Elliott, My Shot

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