How do you photograph tree frogs?

Monday 28 August 2023, 22:11 by Erik Nevels | 4,391 views | 6 comments

This article was translated from Dutch with the help of AI. Read the original.

They are cute little creatures, those tree frogs. They are also difficult to find. Once you have found them, that does not immediately mean you will get a good photo. This blog is about how you can achieve that.

The European tree frog, with the Latin name Hyla Arborea.

Species and distribution.

The European tree frog, with the Latin name Hyla Arborea, occurs across a large part of Europe. In our country, it is the only species found here. Looking at the distribution map, you can find tree frogs (roughly) in the south and east of the Netherlands and in some places along the west coast.

The little creature likes places where it can sit in the sunshine, especially on blackberry bushes. A damp environment near water is also important. Tree frogs grow to 4 to 5 cm, have smooth skin and are green.

Their feet are also striking, with adhesive discs on their toes. Their prey consists of insects.

Their feet are also striking, with adhesive discs on their toes.

Looking for tree frogs.

If you know an area where tree frogs occur (take a look at waarnming.nl, for example), a sunny day gives you the best chance of success. Walking along the bushes, you will not spot them straight away.

Because they are small (especially the young ones), and sit on the green leaves of blackberry bushes with their green camouflage, it is easy to walk straight past them. Walk slowly and search carefully. If you have seen one, there are usually several nearby.

If you have seen one, there are usually several nearby.

Endangered species.

The tree frog is an endangered species, so it is especially important that you do not disturb it. If you want to photograph one, make sure you do not move the bush it is sitting on.

So be careful not to step on branches or touch them with your arms or camera. As long as you do not do that, they will usually stay exactly where they are. Picking them up is definitely not done!

Picking up tree frogs is definitely not done!

Sun worshippers.

Tree frogs are true sun worshippers. They only emerge during the morning and look for a spot in full sunlight. They usually sit on a blackberry leaf, and sometimes on a branch surrounded by sharp thorns.

With their legs folded underneath their bodies, it is a question of whether they are sitting in a good position for an expressive photo. With their backs to you or too far away is much more common than, for example, climbing on a branch with their cute feet clearly visible.

So it is a matter of patience, careful searching and, of course, luck to come across an unusual pose.

So it is a matter of patience, careful searching and, of course, luck to come across an unusual pose.

Choosing a lens

You can actually photograph a tree frog with any lens or focal length. However, because they are so small, you need a macro lens or extension tubes to make them appear larger in the frame.

The immediate disadvantage is that you then have to get close, with the risk of disturbing them. If you have a telephoto lens, you can start with that. This allows you to keep more distance from the animal and photograph it in its surroundings. You can then switch to the macro lens afterwards.

If you have a telephoto lens, you can start with that.

Avoid overexposure

With tree frogs in bright sunlight, you need to watch out for overexposure. Their smooth, damp skin easily reflects the bright sunlight, quickly resulting in blown-out white patches even when the frog is otherwise perfectly exposed.

Without aids, however, this is difficult to prevent. You can wait for the sun to disappear for a moment, or make sure you put the frog in the shade. A small diffuser screen works best. It still lets some light through, but takes the edge off the harshest light.

A polarising filter can also help. This filters out the harsh light, provided that your viewing direction is (reasonably) perpendicular to the direction of the sun's rays.

A polarising filter can also help prevent overexposed patches on the skin.

Underexposing or spot metering.

Another way to partly prevent overexposure of the frog's skin is to underexpose heavily, especially if your light metering is set to cover a large part of the frame.

You can also use spot metering to base the exposure solely on the frog itself and minimise white patches. In both cases, the frog's surroundings will become darker, but this can partly be corrected in post-processing by lifting the shadows.

Another way to partly prevent overexposure of the frog's skin is to underexpose heavily.

Handheld or tripod?

Working from a tripod is certainly fine if you have enough room for it. This sometimes works with a large telephoto lens. With a macro lens, rarely, because you then have to put at least one of the legs into the bushes, which is disastrous.

The movement this causes in the bush will usually disturb the frog and make it disappear. That is something you want to avoid.

In short, photographing them works best handheld. Stabilisation should be switched on and you need a sufficiently fast shutter speed. Depending on the desired depth of field, choose the aperture and the distance to the subject.

That leaves the ISO. Increase it if necessary.

Photographing them works best handheld.

A fascinating subject.

Tree frogs are, as I said, cute. Just finding and admiring them is fascinating and well worth the effort. If you come home with an expressive photo, you can certainly enjoy the experience again at home.

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