Wildlife photography allows you to see some majestic moments that remain unsung in the wild. It brings you closer to a world where the race for survival in extreme conditions is both magnificent and fascinating. Before you head out for wildlife photography, you'll need to carry the essential gear and understand the basic guidelines to capture the beautiful birds and animals on camera safely.
Jackery Solar Generators offer outdoor photographers a great solution for powering their equipment, like cameras, mobile phones, lights, etc., in remote locations. If you also wish to carry your passion and wonder how to get into the field of wildlife photography, then this article will provide in-depth details.
What Is Wildlife Photography?
The goal of the genre of wildlife photography is to capture animals in their native environments. The field originated in 1892 when a British photographer, Cherry Kearton, documented his wildlife shot. In the early 20th century, George Shiras, known as the "father of wildlife photography," transformed the genre by taking pictures of wildlife at night utilizing flash photography and camera traps.
The industry still relies heavily on his conviction that wildlife photography is an important tool for investigating and protecting the natural beauty of a dying world. By creating strong emotional connections between photographers and threatened animals, wildlife photography plays a vital part in conservation efforts. Professional photographers lend their patience and enthusiasm to conservation, and visual images have spurred action and understanding of challenges happening in wildlife.
How Do You Become A Wildlife Photographer?
If you are planning to feed your adventurous mien and aspire to become a wildlife photographer, you must keep in mind the dangers attached to the industry. It is not merely passion-driven but requires a keen sense of wildlife, attentiveness, and meticulousness.
Wildlife photography requires significant investments in professional equipment, time availability, and personal commitment along with a bunch of skills like :
- A strong inclination and love for wildlife and nature.
- Will and motive to conserve Mother Nature and its various inhabitants.
- Patience and determination to capture the most awaited and rare moments.
- Know-how of the wilderness and awareness about the precautions.
- Time management skills to balance work and personal life.
- You should be both adaptable and observant to any environment.
- Passion for achieving knowledge is crucial.
- Technical skills in working with high-end equipment and cameras.
- Life skills like camping, power generating, cooking, and washing.
These skills will make you an ideal person for the field where you work as a wildlife photographer and earn a decent living. Some of the best ways by which you can earn are :
- Publishing pictures on paid websites
- Granting permission to stock websites to use your images
- Working with a wildlife magazine or writing for newspapers
- You can also provide workshops to aspirants
- Create a social media account and increase followers
The average salary of wildlife photographers in America ranges from $39,000 to $63,000, making it a wonderful experience and job if you have a passion for it.
Wildlife Photography Equipment & Gear
To master the skills and knowledge and start your journey, there is a list of equipment that is a must for wildlife photographers. This includes :
1. Tripod
A tripod is one of the basic equipment for wildlife photography. It provides stability and the ability to capture stable and clear images. It helps in long hours of waiting where you can still shoot if tired.
2. Lens
Lenses are important for capturing high-quality images in wildlife photography. Using them, one can take shots of animals in motion, narrow the gap between the subject and background, capture animals in their natural habitats, and even imitate telephoto lenses.
3. Binoculars
A pair of high-quality binoculars is essential for wildlife photography, as they help identify potential subjects and plan shots. A small pair of professional binoculars, similar to the camera body, is a great tool for taking shots of wildlife from a distance.
4. Batteries
Extra batteries help you enjoy extended photography trips when you can, unfortunately, run out of power. Therefore, batteries are also a must for cameras and other battery-operated equipment.
5. Jackery Solar Generator
Jackery Solar Generators are reliable and powerful charging solutions that supply steady power to essential electric devices. These portable solar generators can be useful tools for wildlife photographers because they are a safe and clean way to charge camera batteries, laptops, and other photography equipment. They are also quiet, which can help avoid scaring animals away.
6. Camera
Wildlife photography requires durable cameras that can withstand weather conditions. Two common types are mirrorless cameras and DSLRs. For optimal photography, you must consider factors such as a long shutter life expectancy, faster shutter speed, and silent shutter mode.
Here's a complete checklist covering most of the essential appliances required during the outdoor photography trip.
Choosing a professional camera and lens can be tricky if this is your first time investing in a high-end full-frame camera or even a prime lens. By accessing the following tips, you can make a well-informed decision and choose the best camera, lens, and related gear that will ensure optimal performance and fulfill your photography needs.
- Assess your photography goals before investing in a highly professional camera and lens. Try to understand if you are investing as a hobbyist or want to start a career as a professional photographer.
- Determine your budget range and prioritize features that align with your requirements, such as resolution, video capabilities, autofocus performance, and a sports mode for continuous shooting.
- Before buying a camera yourself, try visiting a camera store or even renting one out to assess the ergonomics, menu navigation, and overall user experience.
- Determine the type of photography you are passionate about. There are different lenses for portraits, landscapes, sports, and macro shoots.
- Evaluate the focal length, aperture, and optical quality when selecting a lens. If it fits your budget, try getting at least one prime lens to help you in portrait and most of the street photography.
- Ensure that your camera and lens are compatible. Otherwise, you will need to acquire a lens adapter, which will decrease the output quality. Consider factors like image stabilization, lens size, autofocus speed, and weight for your use.
What Are The Types of Wildlife Photography?
Wildlife photography is a wide genre of different types of animals and species. Some of the popular types of wildlife photography involve:
Mammal Photography
Wildlife photography often features mammals like bears, wolves, deer, bison, elk, tigers, lions, and elephants. To capture these animals, photographers often use zoom lenses, fast shutter speeds, and high ISO. Timing is crucial, especially during the golden hour when the sun is directly overhead, to improve the light angle and make the photos more captivating.
Bird Photography
Bird photography is a popular niche within the wildlife photography community due to the numerous species of birds available worldwide. Birds are small and fast, requiring expensive equipment to capture the best shots. The popularity of bird photography is due to its majestic shots.
Aerial Photography
This genre involves clicking pictures in and out of the sky. It is usually done using a drone to capture wide lands and animal herds. However, this activity is strictly monitored by the state and needs special permission to perform.
Underwater Photography
Underwater photography involves capturing underwater images of fish and aquatic wildlife, typically done through scuba diving, swimming, snorkeling, or remotely operated underwater vehicles. Despite the high cost of specialized equipment, underwater photography has enabled humans to witness the beauty of underwater creatures.
Wildlife Photography Tips & Techniques
Going on a wildlife expedition is not as easy as eating peanuts. There are certain things that every aspiring wildlife photographer should keep in mind. This includes :
Preparation
Understanding the equipment, the subject, and unpredictable circumstances like inclement weather or dim lighting are also essential to wildlife photography preparation. To ensure your treasured photos are safe, keep backups and carry spare batteries, clothes, food, and more. Purchasing cloud storage or portable hard drives is also required.
Safety
Safety and protection are key factors in wildlife photography. You must understand that wildlife must not be tampered with and that you are a guest in their space. Avoid making loud noises or getting too close to animals. If you encounter wild animals, you must know tips and tricks to escape the situation, like using bear spray in intense situations. You must also carry some camouflage clothing to hide in plain sight.
Shooting
Light plays a crucial role in photos, especially during the golden hour. Thus, to capture great photos, get up early, allow travel time, find the subject, adjust the shutter speed and light level, and monitor your white balance. Auto may not be the best choice for capturing colors, so consider other factors when shooting.
Photography Techniques
Equipment and subject knowledge is fundamental when it comes to shooting professional wildlife pictures. This requires an understanding of photography techniques like optimal camera settings, probably in continuous mode.
Apart from this, these 3 golden rules are a must to avoid any mishap or clicking unpleasant photos.
- Don't get too close
- Let them come to you
- Do not interfere
Jackery Solar Generators For Wildlife Photography
Jackery is one of the famous names in the power generator industry. It was founded in 2012 and is dedicated to offering green energy through solar generators, portable power stations, and solar panels, inspiring nature lovers to explore sustainably and protect the planet.
The Jackery Solar Generators are portable and extremely useful outdoors. The Jackery Explorer Portable Power Station stores energy sent through Jackery SolarSaga Solar Panels and allows you to use it for multiple appliances. Jackery Solar Generators have been proven beneficial for wildlife photography trips because they are lightweight, portable, and easy to access.
Jackery Solar Generator 300 Plus
The Jackery Solar Generator 300 Plus is a compact, portable solar generator featuring iPad-sized Jackery SolarSaga 40W Solar Panels and a power station that fits your backpack. It provides power for outdoor adventures and allows you to charge your camera, phone, drone, and more. The solar generator weighs only 11 lbs, making it convenient to set up and store anywhere. It also features dual PD ports that support charging multiple outdoor photography devices simultaneously.
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Jackery Solar Generator 300 Plus |
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Capacity |
288 Wh |
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Battery Cell |
LiFePO4 |
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Cycle Life |
3000 cycles to 80%+ capacity |
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Output Ports |
AC Output (x1): 120 V, 60 HZ, 300 W (600 W Peak) USB-A Output (x1): 15 W Max 5 V⎓3 A USB-C Output (x1): 15 W Max 5 V⎓3 A USB-C Output (x2): 100 W Max, 5 V⎓3 A (5 V, 9 V, 12 V, 15 V, 20 V up to 5 A) |
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Working Hours |
Camera (9 W): 25.4 H DSLR (30 W): 7.7 H |
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Customer Review |
“Love it!! The setup we purchased is amazing!! I love all of the features on the system, including the app!!”-Kendra Renner. |
Jackery Solar Generator 500
The Jackery Solar Generator 500 is a portable battery-powered generator that can charge most small appliances simultaneously. It is a compact and lightweight charging solution that can be carried to a wildlife photography location to charge outdoor devices. It is made from durable material and is temperature-resistant, so it can safely operate at 14 - 104 °F (-10 - 40 °C).
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Jackery Solar Generator 500 |
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Capacity |
518 Wh |
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Battery Cell |
NMC |
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Cycle Life |
500 cycles to 80%+ capacity |
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Output Ports |
AC Output (x1): 110 V, 60 HZ, 500 W (1000 W Peak) DC Output (x2): 12 V⎓7 A USB-A Output(x3): 5 V⎓2.4 A |
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Working Hours |
DSLR (30 W): 13.8 H Camera (9 W): 46 H |
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Customer Review |
“Best buy of all time. I am so happy with it and look forward to getting more products from Jackery.” –- Edward Nino. |
Jackery Solar Generator 1000
The Jackery Solar Generator 1000 is a large solar generator that can charge small to midsize photography equipment. The multiple output ports available can charge several photography appliances simultaneously for long hours. If you are planning to stay in a camp and enjoy outdoor photography simultaneously, the large Jackery Solar Generator 1000 might be the ideal pick. It can charge multiple appliances like cameras, mobile phones, laptops, tablets, electric blankets, etc., simultaneously for a more enjoyable experience.
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Jackery Solar Generator 1000 |
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Capacity |
1002 Wh |
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Battery Cell |
NMC |
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Cycle Life |
500 cycles to 80%+ capacity |
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Output Ports |
AC Output (x3): 110 V, 60 Hz, 1000 W (2000 W Peak) USB-A Output (x2): 5 V⎓2.4 A, Quick Charge 3.0x1, 18 W Max USB-C Output (x2): 18 W Max, (5 V, 9 V, 12 V up to 3 A) |
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Working Hours |
Camera (9 W): 89.1 H DSLR (30 W): 26.7 H |
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Customer Review |
“Excellent as Always. This is our 3rd Jackery, and they are always flawless. Highly recommended.” — Douglas Aiken. |
FAQs
What size of power station do I need for photography?
The size of the power station required for wildlife photography will depend on the wattage of appliances you want to power simultaneously and for how long. For example, the running time will be less if you are charging appliances with high wattage consumption.
Let's take an example to understand better:
Suppose you are charging a smartphone (30 W), camera (9 W), and lights (30 W) at the same time with the help of the Jackery Solar Generator 300 Plus. The working time can be calculated as follows:
Working Time = Battery Capacity in Wh * 0.85 / Wattage Consumption of All Appliances = 288 Wh * 0.85 / 69 W = 3.5 H.
We have multiplied by 0.85 since there will be some kind of power loss when charging the appliances with any power supply.
What are the best destinations for wildlife photography?
Everglades National Park, Glacier National Park, Yellowstone National Park, Rocky Mountain National Park, Denali National Park and Preserve, and Grand Teton National Park.
Do wildlife photographers make money?
Yes, good revenue can be earned as a wildlife photographer. You can publish pictures, sell them to the stock industry, or even get specifically hired by industries for clicking pictures.
How do I get started in wildlife photography?
Invest in quality camera equipment and study animal behavior. You can also practice wildlife photography, develop editing skills, build a portfolio, and network. In addition, start a local photography project to enhance your skills.
Is wildlife photography hard to get into?
The work of a typical wildlife photographer can be quite challenging, requiring time availability, personal dedication, and large investments in professional camera equipment, particularly at the beginning of their journey.
Final Thoughts
Wildlife photography is a demanding yet fulfilling genre that requires technical expertise, patience, resilience, and respect for nature. Despite challenges, the rewards include a deep connection to nature, witnessing rare moments, contributing to conservation efforts, and personal satisfaction. While you try to capture unseen and unpredictable moments in the field, Jackery Solar Generators will help you power your outdoor equipment.
Learning Resources
Watch these amazing wildlife documentaries on Netflix for a great visual experience.
You can also watch on YouTube
Books to read
- The Encyclopedia Of World Wildlife
- Saving America's Wildlife
- Mammals of North America
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