Extending your Outdoor Shooting day

Unless you're blessed with nearly endless golden light like we have during the summer in Alaska, the relatively short periods of soft light near sunrise and sunset are the bane of wildlife photographers. Especially in the evening when activity often picks up just as the light disappears it can be very frustrating to watch the quality of your images decline as the sun sets. I can't help you make the sun stay out longer, but I can share an old photojournalist trick with you that can let you keep capturing images long after you might have had to stop otherwise...

Simply put the idea is to use a steadily increasing ratio of flash as the light disappears. You're probably familiar with using flash fill to help bring out the color in birds which are side-lit or in the shade. You probably use -1 to -2 stops of flash compensation for that, which is a perfect place to start. But as the light fades just keep moving the flash exposure up until it is so dark that you finally have to give up. The accompanying image of a Lesser Goldfinch shows how flash fill can be used to brighten the colors of a bird as well as bring out some detail on the hard to photograph black feathers on the back.

If you're going to be doing a lot of flash photography I definitely recommend considering a high-end flash for the extra power. For Nikon users that's the Nikon SB-900, a gorgeous unit with un-matched features and power. The optional battery pack, Nikon SD-9, lets the flash recycle quickly. For Canon users the top of the line flash is the Speedlite 580EX II ($50 rebate currently). And all wildlife photographers should have the inexpensive Better Beamer from Visual Echoes (Walt Anderson's innovative company).