A good photograph shows nature the way it is. A great photograph shows nature in a way it has never been seen before.
When non-photographers look at my photographs I often hear one or both of these two sentences:
«...wow, you must have a very good camera!», and «...you were really lucky to get that shot!» While both statements are certainly true, I see a total of five elements to successful wildlife photography:
A good, reliable camera body that will deliver a perfect job when it matters.
Top quality lenses, suited for whatever one sets out to point them at.
Excellent command of the equipment, especially in difficult conditions.
As much time spent in the field as possible.
Profound understanding of animal behaviour, to anticipate developing situations.
Luck is what happens when preparation meets opportunity. Attributed to the Roman philosopher Seneca, this quote certainly summarises my understanding of luck.
What happens after a day in the field is of equal importance. I always* apply a very strict routine for data backup and battery charging. There is nothing worse than getting steps 1 to 5 right, but not being ready when it matters most, because of a memory card that needs formatting, or an empty battery.
*Did I write always? Allow me to share the exception to this rule:
This is a screen shot taken by phone of the backup laptop before accidentally and irretrievably deleting all files of this photograph, and the rest of what was a spectacular day in the Ngorongoro Crater. Yes, years later it still hurts 🥺
Today I follow a rigid 3-level backup routine in the field. Level 1 is stored on the backup laptop, levels 2 and 3 are stored on two professional grade external SSD disks. For my return journey I split the backups and keep one of the backup disks with my passport in a "grab-and-run" bag should there ever be an emergency requiring me to leave the camera bags and luggage behind in a vehicle, aircraft, or boat.
Back at home, when all the RAW files have been transferred to my workstation, selection and processing starts. Mindful processing may make up 50% of what a photographic results will be like.
I won't bore you with details of my workflow, but just to share this: I currently work with Adobe Lightroom and Photoshop. While I have been using the combination of these tools for many years, I don't like how Adobe Inc. developed as a business, and I really dislike their GTCs and the continuous push to shift functionality to their cloud. I will switch as soon as I find viable alternatives, which is not as easy as it sounds.
What kind of post processing has been done to the photographs in my portfolio?
There are two ways in which I process my photographs:
"True to nature" is what I refer to as photographs which I want to reflect the natural scene that was captured as closely as possible. Except where stated, all photographs are made as single, uninterrupted exposures and show wild-living animals. Post processing is strictly limited to common adjustments to the entire image, such as colour temperature, curves, saturation, desaturation to black and white, sharpening, and noise reduction. I will also clone out spots caused by dust on the camera sensor, and in some cases I may apply slight vignetting. But this would be left out if an image would be submitted to nature photography competition. A purist when it comes to framing, I strive to keep cropping to an absolute minimum, mostly to change the format only. My cameras are set to 2:3 format, but I've come to enjoy processing in 16:9 very much in recent years.
"True-to-nature" samples:
"Artistic interpretation" is my definition of photographs which I process to enhance specific qualities. Be it to transport a particular mood, focus on a special detail, creating a technical impression, or simply combining several exposures to produce panorama, or "animal-scape" photograph.
"Artistic interpretation" samples:
My equipment
My first ever SLR camera was an entry level analog Canon EOS, and came in a set with two lenses. It cost a bit less than the very similar Nikon set and was all I could afford at the time. This is how I got used to the Canon system which I relied on for more than 25 years, before (mostly) shifting to Nikon. Digital cameras were just about appearing on the horizon and I remember a lengthy discussion around a camp fire in the Okavango delta one night. There was a professional photojournalist from Germany and he stated that digital photography would never ever be able to produce the image quality of film and that digital cameras would remain limited to news and sports photography, their images only good enough to be reproduced in newspapers. And anyway, he lamented, in addition to logging several Pelicases full of film around, there was no way he was going to do the same for batteries, as digital cameras were just draining power all day long. - This discussion took place in February 2000.
I moved to my first digital Canon EOS camera in 2006. Of course, Nikon combined first class cameras with a lineup of excellent lenses, too. But I had been happy with my equipment and for many years there was no need for an extremely costly switch of systems. (Although I do have some ideas for the use of high-resolution medium format cameras at some point in the future.)
In 2016 I began noticing that Nikon was introducing new cameras which seemed more suitable to my requirements than new cameras Canon was offering. On a Brazil excursion my dear friend, Octavio Campos Salles, was carrying a Nikon D810 and this camera combined what I wished for: higher resolution sensors in combination with fast and reliable autofocus in low light, and improved image quality at higher ISO levels. Around 2018 - 2020 I really felt that Canon had shifted their priorities to photojournalism requiring tough camera bodies and lenses, a high frame-rate, but not necessarily image resolution beyond 25MP. Then in 2018 I first held a Nikon D850 body attached to a 500mm f/5.6 PF (Phase Fresnel) lens and was just completely impressed by the technical finesse. Malini was first top switch to Nikon, and on an excursion to India with Ben Cranke in February 2020 (pandemic looming), I had both Canon and Nikon cameras and lenses in my bags for the first time. Later that year I made the almost full shift and switched to Nikon D850 and a range of F-Mount lenses, later migrating to Nikon's mirrorless Z-Mount system for most use cases.
Migrating from one manufacturer to another, and then from DSLR to mirrorless:
not a project I want to repeat in a hurry!
Equipment for land and aerial photography
Currently I use three types of camera bodies on land and in the air:
Nikon Z9 for all direct observation work
Nikon D850 and Canon EOS 5DS R for camera trapping
In good ambient, or controlled light, and not exceeding ISO 400, I really appreciate the super-fine definition and dynamic range of the Canon EOS 5DS R. It is a great device for camera trapping, although the battery extension system of Nikon is far superior.
I use a selection of lenses to suit my requirements. My favourites are:
NIKKOR Z 600mm f/4 TC S
NIKKOR AF-S 180-400 f/4 TC
NIKKOR Z 70-200mm f/2.8 S
NIKKOR Z 24-120mm f/4 S
NIKKOR Z 14-24mm f/2.8 S
NIKKOR Z 105mm f/2.8 S macro
NIKKOR AF-S 16-35mm f/4 for camera trapping
Canon EF 24-105mm 1/4L IS USM for camera trapping
Whenever possible, I will use sturdy carbon tripods with gimbals or ArcaSwiss tripod heads. SmallRig fittings are used in connection with a monopod to lower cameras from vehicles to ground level, using BLE remote triggers. Where possible I may use an Elinchrome ONE off-camera flash system with diffusor.
For camera trapping I use the system we are busy developing ourselves with our little tech startup Intellitraps Ltd.:
SmartSense Combined PIR and ToF sensors for optimum detection reliability
SmartShoe Signal transmission between sensor, camera, and flashes
SmartFlash Intelligent flash system with time-dependent power settings
Find soon on: ww.intellitraps.com
Equipment for under water photography
For underwater photography I use the following camera and lens equipment:
Nikon D850 for SCUBA diving, in combination with a Nauticam underwater case NIKKOR AF-S MICRO 105mm f/2.8 for macro
NIKKOR AF-S 16-35mm f/4 for wide angle
All of this goes into a Nauticam camera case, and depending on the set-up I use a macro dome or a wide-angle glass dome. I currently use the X-Adventurer M7000 lights exclusively in video mode, not as flashes. These lights combine a 7000 lumen white LED with options for UV light, red light, fluorescent light, and a 64-colour RGB light mix. There are several other manufactures, but I feel very comfy with my Nauticam set. The only downside is that for each dive I have to decide whether I want to use the wide angle 16-35mm or macro 105mm set-up, but most of the time this works well.
Once you are happy with your gear, it is all about spending time in the wild. Or as Peter Adams puts it:
"Great photography is about depth of feeling, not depth of field"
Please feel free to contact me for further information about equipment for wildlife and nature photography!
Patrick Meier (updated) 12.11.2024
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