Zoo with only a 50mm.

Hi all!

At first I'd like to say that I'm new to the forum, so please correct me if something goes wrong. In the future of course I'll try to comment on other posts as well.

Last week I went to the zoo with only the 50mm 1.4 on my 5D and tried to get some decent shots. I'm curious to hear any suggestions on how I can improve my images.

Thanks!

1.

I'm not much of a critic...but I can say..welcome aboard! You will learn a lot here without even trying!

Well done and welcome

welcome and nice shots!

Welcome to POTN! I think you captured some excellent shots with only a 50mm prime. That is not an easy task, but you pulled it off very well. The dolphin shot is the only one where you were focal length limited. We visit our zoo quite often, as we have a membership. I always bring along a 5D3 + 100-400L. I think I would find limiting myself to a 50mm prime would be extremely difficult, so hats off to you for your creativity.

Really nice shots with the nifty fifty

Nice demonstration of the versatility of that FL on FF.

thijs wrote in post #16235304
I'm curious to hear any suggestions on how I can improve my images.

Thanks!

Firstly, welcome to the forum.

Secondly, my thoughts about improving your images.

1. I would have turned the camera to portrait (vertical) orientation and got the whole giraffe in the shot. Cutting it off where you did is not the best composition, if you were on the same raised walkway that we can see opposite, you would have got an interesting perspective shooting down to get it all in, one which would emphasize the height of the animal. It would also give less wasted space off to the sides, which add nothing to the image and just make the subject less distinct. As it stands you only have half an animal (and the shallow doF from such a wide aperture means that the body is not in focus) and a lot of empty space and people on the walkway behind it. Shooting a vertical shot would get rid of a lot of the wasted space, it would also eliminate some of the distraction from people. You DO get bonus marks for shooting from a position that placed the trees behind the giraffe. I would have used a smaller aperture to get the whole giraffe reasonably sharp, and waited until there was nobody in shot opposite (or minimised the number to make cloning them out easier).

2. The sealion head is almost lost amongst all that wasted space, so much so it isn't clear what it is, as Scott M thinks it's a dolphin! The out of focus sealion at the back makes a nice counterpoint, but the back of a sealion in the water is messy and distracting.

3. Again a lot of wasted space. Is it meant to be a photograph of the sealions or the people? As it stands the people are clearer, and are the first thing that the eye sees. The sealions are less clear, one is just a blob in a splash of water, it would have been better to take the shot when both had their heads in clear view.

Both sealion shots are very much compromised by lack of focal length though, it would be tough to get a good shot of them with just the 50mm, without resorting to very severe cropping.

4. Nice catch on the prairie dog / marmot (whatever it is). The pose is nice and you have caught it doing something interesting. Again though, a lot of wasted space to the sides. If you could crop away both sides and a little above it, to really tighten the framing on the subject it would make a great shot.

5. A nice shot, but the oranges are over saturated and look a bit blown out in places (some of that can be sorted in editing). The butterfly isn't particularly sharp either. I think the choice of f/1.8 for that shot was wrong, when you get in close to shoot insects you usually need decent DoF, and insect shots are usually done with smaller apertures for that reason. I see that you used ISO 50 for the shot (and a couple of others) is there a reason for that? ISO 50 is not a regular ISO, which is why it is locked out unless you specifically turn on the expansion. It doesn't exist, the camera shoots at ISO 100, then pulls the exposure back. That could be why the oranges are blowing out a little, as the shot was overexposed and then pulled back by a stop. ISO 50 would normally only be used when needing a particularly slow shutter speed (for blurring moving water for example) when you don't have ND filters with you. You might stop the lens down to a small aperture and use ISO 50 to give as long a shutter speed as possible. In normal use, you are better off leaving them locked out and not using them without a very specific reason.

6. Nice shot, I would prefer a bit more density in the image myself, it's a bit light for my taste. Again a closer crop would get rid of some of the excess space around the monkey and make the subject stand out a bit more.

Overall, these are quite good shots considering the limits of a 50mm lens. I always try and keep anything unnatural (bars, mesh, concrete, people etc.) out of my zoo shots, so they look as natural as possible. The exception being when the unnatural is a meaningful part of the shot (such as a monkey holding the bars of it's cage and pressing a sorrowful face against them - the bars then help tell the story). Of course, the longer the lens, the tighter you can shoot and that helps keep the frame tighter on the subject and keeps out unwanted elements. So, again, you had to work with what you had.

I would think more about your apertures, shallow DoF is good for getting rid of backgrounds, but make sure you still have enough for the subject.

I hope this doesn't come across as too negative. You asked how your shots could be improved and I have tried to suggest ways that would improve them, to my eyes. Other opinions may differ. Some people who ask for critique really want people to tell them they are wonderful, and get upset if they actually get what they asked for. I hope that isn't the case here, if it is, I apologise. If you genuinely want suggestions, I hope this has helped.

Cheers.

I think that is a great critique. Overall decent shots, but doing the same as most do when they start shooting with wide apertures, Constant wide open shots turn into snapshots after too many. Not trying to be negative at all

Thanks to all for the kind words and very helpful critiques! Especially you, sandpiper.

I'll keep the suggestions in mind.

Taking only one lens, particularly fixed, to a zoo can be tough, but I like the challenge it presents. I do it myself sometimes, take only one lens (not necessarily the zoo). It forces one to work within the limitation, and realize that some shots can't be had, while your own creativity gives you others you wouldn't expect. Good effort.

jherm87 wrote in post #16236862
I think that is a great critique. Overall decent shots, but doing the same as most do when they start shooting with wide apertures, Constant wide open shots turn into snapshots after too many. Not trying to be negative at all

Much agreeance, always play around with settings. I had 2 good shots on my last Zoo trip that would have been great shots had I just adjusted shutter speed. That being said this set still blows away my best stuff.

Scott M wrote in post #16236673
Welcome to POTN! I think you captured some excellent shots with only a 50mm prime. That is not an easy task, but you pulled it off very well. The dolphin shot is the only one where you were focal length limited. We visit our zoo quite often, as we have a membership. I always bring along a 5D3 + 100-400L. I think I would find limiting myself to a 50mm prime would be extremely difficult, so hats off to you for your creativity.

Dolphin? Not in the set I'm seeing. Perhaps the OP took it down.

YashicaFX2 wrote in post #16240227
Dolphin? Not in the set I'm seeing. Perhaps the OP took it down.

I was referring to the wide shot in the pool. By the motion in the water, my initial impression was that they were dolphins. Upon further inspection, I can see that they are seals. As I said earlier, that shot didn't really work at the OP's limited 50mm focal length.

Using a single, "normal" focal length does present challenges in these shooting environments. I prefer to use tight framing for our zoo visits to attempt to make as many shots as possible look like they were not taken in a zoo.

Scott M wrote in post #16240638
I was referring to the wide shot in the pool. By the motion in the water, my initial impression was that they were dolphins. Upon further inspection, I can see that they are seals. As I said earlier, that shot didn't really work at the OP's limited 50mm focal length.

Using a single, "normal" focal length does present challenges in these shooting environments. I prefer to use tight framing for our zoo visits to attempt to make as many shots as possible look like they were not taken in a zoo.

I kinda figured that. Just pokin' fun. I couldn't resist.