Techniques for Photographing Reptiles and Amphibians in the Field

A good photograph can catch your breath the moment you see it. It's like having the contents of an entire novel read to you at once, leaving you stunned as you grasp the enormity in a single moment. Skilled author can move us to experience the emotions they felt when they wrote their passages and a skilled photographer can do the same with the right image. Whether you are a scientist photographing a newly discovered species or a backpacker wanting to preserve a special moment of your trip, there are a few simple photographic principles – that when considered prior to pressing the shutter release button – can dramatically enhance the emotional impact and quality of your photographs.

This book was not written for professional wildlife or studio photographers. It was written for backpackers, field biologists, or anyone else who spends a significant amount of time outdoors and wants to take quality photographs with a minimal amount of equipment. This is also not a book about the physics of photography as there are many fine books on that subject. Nor is this a book on graphic design. Although post-processing plays a significant role in reproducing images nowadays, that image should be conceived in your head beforehand and then transferred to your camera's sensors – the place where it takes its first physical manifestation. If that image is not generated with sound photographic techniques, post-processing can only help it so much. Some of the basic skills will be discussed, but it is a minimal component of this book. Foremost this is a book that will help you to tell better stories through your pictures.

This is a revised and expanded hard copy edition of an ebook originally published in 2020 and then republished in 2021 by Cicak Books, California.