(no subject)

[guppiecat]

Continuing from the Minnesota Zoo set. Today's highlights cover a wolves and prairie dogs.




Mexican Wolf (Canis lupus baileyi) - One in a while, I am very very glad to not be a rabbit.


Mexican Wolf (Canis lupus baileyi) - He was less than a foot from me when I took this photo. I'm a fan of glass now.


Prairie Dog (Cynomys ludovicianus) - He actually managed to pick the whole thing up! ...


Prairie Dog (Cynomys ludovicianus) - Then he used his hands and started eating it.


Prairie Dog (Cynomys ludovicianus) - This shot just screamed to be turned into black and white.


Prairie Dog (Cynomys ludovicianus) - Good prairie dogs floss after every meal


Prairie Dog (Cynomys ludovicianus) - Later in life, Wilford Brimley could only get work playing a prairie dog at the zoo.


Prairie Dog (Cynomys ludovicianus) - I just like how this one turned out.


Prairie Dog (Cynomys ludovicianus) - Apparently, structural engineering is problematic all over the twin cities.

Comments

[minnehaha.livejournal.com]

Are you using a tripod?

B

[guppiecat]

Sometimes yes, sometimes no. For most of the shots on this page, I was not using a tripod. However, for the shots in this set, I did.

I either do or do not depending on the conditions and the shot that I'm trying to make:

1) If the shot requires a long exposure due to light level of extreme depth of field, I use a tripod.
2) If the shot requires ridiculous amounts of focusing (close-up shots, usually), I use a tripod.
3) If the subject is moving a lot, I do not use a tripod.
4) If my arms are tired / near the end of a shooting day, I do not use a tripod.
5) If I need to do magic with off-camera flash, I will use a tripod, so I can position my lights by hand. (This also works better with a remote cord too.)
6) Later this month, I hope to cobble together a flash bracket system, so that I can do off-camera flash on the tripod with fast-moving small subjects. That's kinda the hybrid of the two methods, but would be really heavy. I'm still deciding.

Also, I have a sub-optimal tripod and head combo. If I were to re-purchase, I would spend the extra money to get a carbon-fiber tripod and a better tripod head. As it is, I will probably do this once I start hiking for real, instead of occasionally.