Day At The Zoo

Hey Guys, This is my first time posting. I just signed up today and need some advice. Let me Know what you think. Now all of these pics were taken by a 75-300 no is on my old canon xt body. Thanks guys for your input

Love pic 1!!! So cute!

Pic 2 is very nice, however I'd crop a bit off the top.

Pic 3... very pretty pic, but too bad he/she is not looking up!!

Personally I think the seal shot is nice but I might have cropped it in a bit more to just the face and the flipper. Otherwise, that's a very nice capture.

The shot of the flamingo....I don't wish to sound rude here, but it looks like he's mooning you! LOL!!! Was there a specific point in taking a picture of the birds butt? I'm sorry...I'm honestly not trying to be mean here, but I find it very hard to take this image seriously at all.

The shot of the polar bear is ok but as howaboutnow said, it's a shame the bear isn't actually looking at you. I also might have cloned out those red spots on his front paw as well...not sure if he/she was bleeding or if that was just some left-overs from dinner there, but to me it's rather distracting.

Again I think the first shot was well timed, but in regards to the second two shots, my biggest piece of advice is PATIENCE. One of the really wonderful things about shooting at a zoo is that you can take your time and -wait for the shot- without having to worry about the animal scurrying off (or in the case of bears, having them come after you!). The single biggest mistake I see people make with zoo photography is that they are running around like a bunch of rabbits...often being towed along by their kids...trying to see and take pictures of EVERYTHING. They'll spend maybe 30 seconds at any given exhibit and then off they go. When I'm shooting at a zoo, first and foremost I'll leave "the family" at home...if I'm going there to shoot, I'm going there to shoot. I will typically spend several hours just at one exhibit or building and I will often spend an hour or more just shooting one animal or one group of animals. Of course if the animals are asleep, yes I will move on but as long as they're active, I stay put and wait for my shots. This also gives you time to "observe" the given animal as well so that you can start to anticipate your shots. Many animals in captivity are born and raised in captivity and don't always behave the same way their wild counterparts do. For example, most "wild" animals don't have a regularly scheduled feeding time the way zoo animals do. If you can find out when that feeding time is, there's a better chance of the given critter being more active as they are waiting for the zoo keeper. More over, just like people they all have their own unique personalities and in my mind at least, capturing that personality is part of what makes a great photograph compared with an average snap shot.

Seriously...take your time, be patient, relax and enjoy shooting the animals. Also, since you're shooting with a digital, shoot LOTS of pictures! There's an old saying in the photography world, "film is cheap so shoot lots of it"...well, digital film is even cheaper, so fill those memory cards!!! You can always stop later and have a burger and review what you've shot to delete any of the really bad ones, then go shoot more. And...wait for the animals to look at you...no butts about it .

Peace,
Jim