20 Years of Wildlife Photography in Extreme Weather: Lessons and Techniques
Kate Garibaldi reflects on her twenty years of wildlife photography, emphasizing how challenging weather can enrich images with depth and emotion. Her guide covers essential topics such as camera settings, autofocus techniques, and protecting gear. Notable photography locations include Olympic National Park, Great Smoky Mountains, Yellowstone, Churchill, Jigokudani Monkey Park, Iceland, Svalbard, South Georgia Island, Antarctica, and Patagonia. Preparation requires weather-sealed equipment, rain covers, lens hoods, microfiber cloths, rocket blowers, extra warm batteries, and silica gel packets. In cold conditions, hand warmers and sealed bags are advisable. Suggested settings feature positive exposure compensation for snowy scenes, fast shutter speeds (1/640-1/1000s), and spot metering in fog, as weather significantly influences animal behavior.
Key facts
- Kate Garibaldi has 20 years of experience photographing wildlife in extreme weather.
- Snow, fog, rain, and storms can add atmosphere and emotion to wildlife images.
- Weather-sealed gear, rain covers, lens hoods, and microfiber cloths are essential for protection.
- Extra batteries should be kept warm in inner jacket pockets; hand warmers can help in extreme cold.
- Sealed plastic bags prevent condensation when moving cold gear indoors.
- Positive exposure compensation is needed for snow scenes to avoid underexposure.
- Fast shutter speeds (1/640-1/1000s) freeze precipitation; slower speeds (1/60-1/125s) create motion blur.
- Spot metering on the subject is recommended in foggy conditions.
- Autofocus can be distracted by falling snow/rain; single-point or manual focus may be better.
- Key locations include Olympic National Park, Great Smoky Mountains, Yellowstone, Churchill, Jigokudani Monkey Park, Iceland, Svalbard, South Georgia Island, Antarctica, and Patagonia.
- Weather influences wildlife behavior: birds fluff feathers, mammals become more active in light snow.
- The article is published on PetaPixel and includes affiliate links.
Entities
Artists
- Kate Garibaldi
Institutions
- PetaPixel
- Olympic National Park
- Great Smoky Mountains National Park
- Banff National Park
- Jasper National Park
- Yellowstone National Park
- Jigokudani Monkey Park
- Kaziranga National Park
- Corbett National Park
Locations
- Washington
- United States
- Great Smoky Mountains
- Rocky Mountains
- Canada
- Banff
- Jasper
- Yellowstone
- Churchill
- Manitoba
- Japan
- Jigokudani
- Iceland
- Norway
- Svalbard
- South Georgia Island
- Antarctica
- Patagonia
- Chile
- Argentina
- India
- Costa Rica