Photography is a wonderful opportunity to explore our world.  It requires us to slow down, and observe what is happening around us.  By putting a camera in our hands, we choose to focus on the mechanics of the world.

Yesterday, I had a wonderful opportunity to go to a wildlife rehabilitation center with a class I was teaching.  The students brought their cameras, and listened to the stories of the individual animals.  Many ended up at the center, because of injuries that occurred from human created activities (such as being hit by a car or shot with pellets).

Each permanent resident of the center were unable to survive in the wild.  Their issues ranged from inability to fly to inability to hunt for themselves.  So, the center looks after and feeds them.  In return, the animals are teachers in presentations the center gives about wildlife.

The center encouraged my students to take pictures and learn.  This is one photo of I took on the tour. . .

This image is photographed through a mesh enclosure.  The process for eliminating the mesh includes proximity of the camera lens to the mesh, exposure and flash. 

First, the mesh needs to be near the lens, and remember to place the important parts of your subject in the openings.  In this case, I placed the eyes of the owl in the openings, so that they would be tack sharp. 

Second, I used a shallow depth of field.  By doing this, the background became a blur, and, with the mesh distortion in the foreground, it looks like running water.  Also, it makes the owl stand-out from the background.

Third, I did not use a flash.  I used natural light.  A flash could have made the mesh stand-out, scared the owl and made the background look harsh.  It would have taken away from the soft natural light look of the image.

Next time you visit the zoo, bring your camera, and experiment with exposure for the best pictures possible. . .

More later. . .Karen