ANIMALS, PHOTOGRAPHY OF This branch of photographic work is one that has received increasing attention as improve ments have been made in lenses, plates, appara tus, and special devices. The reflex camera and the telephoto lens, especially, have been effective helps to the natural history photographer. Animal photography may be roughly divided into three sections : (a) that of domestic animals—the horse, cow, sheep, dog, cat, etc. ; (h) that of wild animals in their natural habitat ; (c) that of wild animals in captivity.
In the case of wild animals in their native haunts, a very limited amount of work may be done with the ordinary apparatus ; still more may be accomplished by the use of telephoto lenses ' • while a good deal has been done by special arrangements by means of which animals have been made to photograph themselves, so to speak, by flashlight.
The methods of dealing with domestic animals, and with wild animals in captivity, are practically identical. The work is greatly facilitated by the use of a reflex camera ; a lens of fairly long focus in relation to the plate, and of large aperture ; a rapid plate ; and a shutter working as quietly as possible with high efficiency and capable of good speed. It is advisable to know something of the animal to be dealt with, especially its characteristic poses and movements. The reflex camera enables the worker to keep the animal accurately in focus and in position on the plate, and to make the exposure at the most suitable moment. The use of a large stop makes full exposure possible even at high-shutter speeds, and also bestows the important advantage of being able to keep the background diffused while the animal itself is sharply defined.
Selective focusing and a suitable lighting of the animal itself are important factors in obtaining an impressive result. It must be remembered, however, that even when the back ground is diffused its character and suitability must be carefully considered. If, for example, it contains many points of bright light, these may be exaggerated into " blobs " that are unsightly and irritating. Another thing to avoid is the use of a short focus lens at close quarters, especially when taking an animal head on," the result being an exaggeration of the head and a dwarfing of the body. It is generally advisable, particularly in the case of small animals, to hold the camera low down. An effort should be made in the case of wild animals in captivity to keep out of the picture any railings, network, or other evidence of their not being in their natural haunts.
When the camera used focuses to scale, and CI reflex camera is not available, failure is mini mised by not attempting work at very dose quarters, but rendering the animal on a smaller scale and afterwards enlarging the result. The most noticeable drawback to this procedure is that the surroundings and background are ren dered too sharply, and so compete in importance with the animal itself. (See also "Birds, Photo graphy of," and " Zoological Photography.")