Show more than just an animal in the photo

Wednesday 25 June 2025, 16:08 by Nando Harmsen | 2,228 views | 1 comment

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

Photographing animals is fun. Especially when you also get the animal very large in the frame. We go to great lengths to make that happen. Try showing more than just the animal.

We climb into a hide. We use camouflage clothing and tents to hide ourselves. We buy super-telephoto lenses, as far as our budget allows and sometimes a little further.

We do it to get the animal we want to photograph as large as possible in the frame. Sometimes even from edge to edge in the photo. Every hair of the coat should be visible, every feather. And preferably with a creamy soft background.

A photo of a black-tailed godwit that could, so to speak, appear in an identification guide. It is beautiful, but no more than that.
The animal filling the frame is beautiful, certainly. But it quickly becomes boring. I often jokingly call it an identification photo. A photo showing so many details of the animal that they could fit perfectly in an identification guide.

Try showing the animal in its surroundings as well. Where does it live, and what does its habitat look like? Think about composition and include elements from the surroundings. Tell a story and give the animal a place where it can exist.

A black-tailed godwit on a post, with a row of posts, the village in the background, the meadow, grasses and plants. The photo tells a story and gives you more room to play with composition.
It usually is not necessary to fill the frame with every detail in the photo. It does not make the photo more exciting. Include the surroundings and it does. You get much more opportunity to create creative compositions and an engaging visual structure.

Do both if you get the chance. Take a photo with the animal large in the frame. Once you have that photo, zoom out and play with attractive compositions. You will notice that the photos including the surroundings will ultimately be much more interesting.

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