PHOTOGRAPHER’S JOURNEY.com

When it comes to photography at zoos, I have mixed feelings. On the one hand, I do think zoos serve a purpose - educating people about animals, working to preserve endangered species, etc. But there is something vaguely disquieting in seeing some of these creatures literally behind bars. For me, at least.

That said, I go to the zoo here in Washington, D.C, often, armed with my Canon 30D and the longest lens I’ve got (a 70-200mm f/2.8 with image stabilization). The National Zoo, while it has its problems, is certainly among the best. And I could be wrong about this but I’ve always suspected the greater number of people visiting the zoo here are not out-of-towners flying in to see the various sites, but regular locals who just enjoy having a good day.

Either way, since the zoo does not charge an admission price (you can walk right in) it’s a pretty easy way to find fun for a day in Washington.

As a photographer, my attraction to the zoo may be different than what interests a true wildlife photographer. To begin with, although zoo animals are wild, they aren’t running wild. And for me, the mere fact of captivity changes things a bit.

When I visit the zoo I tend to seek out more abstract images in my photographs. The colors are spectacular. I’ve blogged before about the power of color and finding it in unusual places, and with these animals, it is no exception. The range of colors is just extraordinary.

I love the bird house for that reason. I took the photograph above of a bird - I swear it was a giant pidgeon - that perched on a handrail right near the exit from the birdhouse. Its feathers were simply stunning, and set against a white wall as it was it made an ideal opportunity. I tried easing myself closer, very slowly, but it did what most birds do when they see me - it took off flight! Women do that too when they see me. Go figure. But at least I got a shot I really like.

Now, being the first to critique my own images as I often am, I can tell you I think it would have been a better photograph if I’d had time to mount a flash - or even, I suppose, the *yikes* built-in flash. Something might have been better than nothing, since I think it would have really popped out the details in the feathers a bit more. But hey, this birdie wasn’t sticking around.

What draws me to more abstract photographs at the zoo, though, is the sense that I am not really trying to photograph animals “in the wild.” And since that’s the case, there’s no reason to make a shot of a creature look like it’s in the wild (hard to do, anyway). So I end up focusing in more closely on details in these beautiful creatures. The birds are an especially great thing to shoot. But so are the reptiles - snakes, lizards, etc. Even the small monkeys. The National Zoo has a collection of Golden Lion Tamarins, small monkeys that, as you can guess, are strikingly beautiful shade of gold. The little guys don’t sit still for very long but they make great photographic subjects when they do.

But that’s the thing about a zoo. For me, captive animals can be photographed in ways that nature wouldn’t ordinarily allow. At least, not easily. And although, as I said, I have mixed feelings about seeing these beautiful creatures in captivity in the first place, the zoo experience can be a very rewarding one for a photographer.

You may be wondering how much tweaking I had to do in Photoshop with these two images and the answer is not very much. On MR. GIANT PIDGEON (okay I know that’s not its real name) I cropped slightly - just to remove the bird’s legs from the scene which were a distraction. I also had to whiten the background slightly, since the paint on the wall was a bit milky. But I did nothing to the bird itself beyond very standard color adjustment. Those were the bird’s real colors. Just incredible.

And my little golden monkey-friend? He was trickier. The image is slightly soft since I actually shot through glass. But the only adjustment I did on him was to slightly increase the reflectivity (the twinkle) in his eyes. The glass between us had reduced the twinkle in his eyes somewhat so my adjustment merely restored it to what I think it would have been.

In any case, if you have any zoo stories, tips or suggestions, please do share them by posting a comment.

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