Trophy Game Photography Tips from Guy Eastman
Far too often, I hear “I wish I would have taken better photos” from fellow hunters who didn’t take the time or have the proper knowledge of photography to properly document their trophy hunting experience. Taking a great photo of your trophy in as little as 15 to 20 minutes is easy, with some basic knowledge of digital photography and a good camera.
Start with the right equipment, and the right settings.
Just like hunting optics, buy the best camera you can afford, preferably one with at least 5 mega-pixel quality. For outdoor photography, adjust the aperture setting to shoot the equivalent of 100-speed film. You should also set your camera to “Super-Fine” and “Large” file size, so your camera collects as much information as possible: digital data cannot be replaced or created after the fact, but you can always downsize the image for emailing, etc. An extra memory card (1-giga-byte) is also a must. When downloading your images to your computer, each image should be between 1 and 3 MB (mega-bytes) in size. If they’re smaller than this, double-check your settings.
Proper Lighting
First, to ensure proper lighting, be sure the subjects (hunter and trophy) are looking into the sun. Direct sunlight, however, reduces photo quality. If you’re forced to take photos in harsh sunlight (from about 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.) use your flash to fill shadows. On a partly cloudy day, be patient and wait for the sun to break through, then shoot. The ideal light is in the “golden” two hours after sunrise and before sunset.
Show Respect for Your Trophy
The first rule of composing your shot is to show proper respect for the animal. Don’t do silly poses with your trophy. Take your shots in a natural setting: don’t shoot your trophy deer strung up, or in the back of your pickup. Place the animal’s tongue back in its mouth, and clean up as much blood as possible. Then show the best attributes the animal has to offer. If it’s a tremendous spread, a straight on shot may be best. If there’s a unique drop tine, be sure you get it in the shot.
Composition is Key
By keeping the body of the animal broadside to the camera, you give the hunter something to get down behind and a way to incorporate the firearm into the photo. Clear grass and brush from in front of your trophy. Now get down low, even lying on the ground if needed: the very best trophy photos are taken right at eye level with the animal. The hunter should sit low as well, with his or her head below the top of the antlers. Next, get in close. Never use the zoom or digital zoom…simply get in as close as possible to your subjects. After all, you want a photo of the hunter and the trophy, not extraneous background.
Check Your Background
On that note, take a good look at everything behind the hunter that will be in the photo. Try to get a nice scenic backdrop if possible, even if this means dragging your trophy a short distance. Look for power lines, four-wheelers, pick-ups, houses, people or other distractions. It doesn’t take much to seriously detract from a good photo.
Final Tips
Keep your camera easily accessible, and you’ll take more pictures. Hold your camera as steady as possible in low light. Remember, the best things about digital photography are that you see results instantly, and you can take lots of photos, so don’t be afraid to experiment. Try different angles, or different lighting. Discover what works and what doesn’t. Finally, tell your hunter to smile…after all, they’ve just completed a successful hunt!
Downloading and Backup
Always copy your photo files to your computer and burn a back-up CD of the original files straight from your camera, before taking the chip somewhere to be processed. Never, ever take the memory chip to a photo processor and then empty the chip. Processors will downsize your files to expedite the process. If you then erase them, you’ll never have access to those images at their highest quality level again.
This is an excerpt from a larger piece by Guy Eastman: download the full article.
