[bessa-66]

Whoops, didn't see that one sorry mate . Nice shots man...

[aslyfox]

Yep, unless animals are used to people they'll be far away by the time you get your camera out.

there are times, not frequent of course, where wild life freezes and gives you an opportunity

also, if you are talking about birds or insects, you may find that they repeat patterns and if you are lucky and patient, you can see them, grab your equipment (quietly) and hope for a " repeat " performance.

often, and I am certainly no expert, I find sudden movement more of a trigger than noise or even sight:

if you have ever observe a predator, like a house cat, stalk prey, you will observe, slow quiet approaches and if the prey looks at the predator, the predator freezes

good lessons to be learned from such observations, IMHO, YMMV

no guarantees of course, that is why they are " wild " life photo opportunities

[TER-OR]

if you have ever observe a predator, like a house cat, stalk prey, you will observe, slow quiet approaches and if the prey looks at the predator, the predator freezes

good lessons to be learned from such observations, IMHO, YMMV

no guarantees of course, that is why they are " wild " life photo opportunities

Patience is the best ally for wildlife photography. A lot of animals will become accustomed to you if you're in an area often enough, and never threaten them. I know wildlife photographers who have relationships with the animals in certain spaces, and will allow her to remain while they hunt or forage. When I'm in the same areas, the coyotes and hawks maintain a distance or just leave.

I've also watched my dog (Xerxes our husky died several years ago, but he was one patient hunter) stalk a housecat which was stalking birds. By the time Xerk stepped on something which made enough noise for the cat to notice, he was about 15 feet away. The cat jumped over the fence with mere inches of safety. That dog was a real dude. Indoor cats were tolerated, outdoor cats were "critters."

[mattb123]

I don't shoot a whole lot of wildlife (it's one word by the way) but when I do, I like to do it from my living room.

[aslyfox]

I don't shoot a whole lot of wildlife (it's one word by the way) but when I do, I like to do it from my living room.

if wild life[ as opposed to wildlife] is the only error when posting a message

it is a good day


do you know why some professionals such as attorneys employ secretaries

to make sure the attorney's errors are corrected

one of the worse things an attorney can do in court is to blame a spelling or drafting error on the secretary though:

Judge:

are you telling me you signed this official document without reading it first

attorney:

of course not judge

Judge:

so whose fault is it

attorney:

mine

[mattb123]

Not sure if you are taking it as criticism but I thought you might like to know. If not you can disregard.

When I think of wild life and not wildlife, I picture something more like this! Maybe that's just me.

[aslyfox]

Not sure if you are taking it as criticism but I thought you might like to know. If not you can disregard.

When I think of wild life and not wildlife, I picture something more like this! Maybe that's just me.

I have many personal sins

among them

I see Constructive Criticisms as Criticisms - my fault, not th fault of those offer constructive criticisms

however, I did not see your comments about wildlife as any sort of constructive criticism or any other type of criticism

IOW, we're good

[jacamar]

One good strategy is to see which way the animal is moving, position yourself ahead of where it's going, then sit quietly and wait for it to come to you. That has worked for me with ducks, shorebirds and a Rusty Blackbird moving along a shoreline, and a bear moving along the edge of a road eating dandelions - even goldfinches going after thistle seeds in the space between trail and a shoreline. When creatures are preoccupied with something like feeding or defending territory they will often let you further into their space. The Arctic Ground Squirrels pictured below scattered when I approached but soon come out continued chasing each other around when I just sat on the ground and stayed still. A foam mat for sitting on can help!

IMGP4114A

IMGP7668A

I haven't had Ian's luck with Kingfishers. They may have favourite perching spots but ours are off to the other end of the lake when you get within 100 yards of them The other main thing is just to spend time in productive habitat to increase the probability that you will be there when something interesting happens.