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When we see a pro photographer's wildlife portraiture, there is just something special about its look.  It just "looks so professional."  Want to know how this is consistently possible?

In this episode, we dive into how pro photographers use their tools and techniques to their advantage to get amazing portraiture of animals and emphasize that sensational contrast of blurred background with tack-sharp focus on the animal subject.

My Full Camera Kit:
Canon R5 Body
Canon 16-35mm f/2.8
Canon 24-105mm f/4
Canon 100-500mm f/4.5-7.1
Canon 100mm f/2.8

• Check out Court’s photography and conservation work: CourtWhelan.com
• Follow Court Whelan (@courtwhelan) on YouTube for more photography tips
• Sign up for Court's conservation, travel and photography blog at www.courtwhelan.com
• View Court's recommended camera gear
• Promo Codes:
  LensRentals.com - WildPhotographer15 for 15% off
  ShimodaDesigns.com - Whelan10 for 10% off
  Arthelper.Ai - WILD for 30 day free trial of Pro Version

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Photography certainly has its fair share of fancy terms and complicated menu systems. This is even more true in this digital age.  However, bracketing is actually one of the more ancestral options within a camera menu, with roots stretching firmly back to film days.

Do you need bracketing?  What is it?  Tune in to learn all about it, the various applications, how to use it, and what are the best scenes to actually use it.

My Full Camera Kit:
Canon R5 Body
Canon 16-35mm f/2.8
Canon 24-105mm f/4
Canon 100-500mm f/4.5-7.1
Canon 100mm f/2.8

• Check out Court’s photography and conservation work: CourtWhelan.com
• Follow Court Whelan (@courtwhelan) on YouTube for more photography tips
• Sign up for Court's conservation, travel and photography blog at www.courtwhelan.com
• View Court's recommended camera gear
• Promo Codes:
  LensRentals.com - WildPhotographer15 for 15% off
  ShimodaDesigns.com - Whelan10 for 10% off
  Arthelper.Ai - WILD for 30 day free trial of Pro Version

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It's one of the more frequent opportunities we have as nature photographers...to capture an awesome sunset or sunrise.  However, there is a big difference between just documenting it and capturing something extraordinary.  And for those times where these solar displays are just mind-blowing, we tend to get lost in the moment and forget the artistry involved.

I've honed these techniques and tips for years and years of photographing sunsets (and sunrises!) from all over the world and am excited to share them with you.  Some are simple...some are a bit more complex, but each will individually level-up your sunset photography.  And when used in conjunction, they come together in a grand formula for getting sensational, and unique, sunrise and sunset photos guaranteed to impress.

My Full Camera Kit:
Canon R5 Body
Canon 16-35mm f/2.8
Canon 24-105mm f/4
Canon 100-500mm f/4.5-7.1

• Check out Court’s photography and conservation work: CourtWhelan.com
• Follow Court Whelan (@courtwhelan) on YouTube for more photography tips
• Sign up for Court's conservation, travel and photography blog at www.courtwhelan.com
• View Court's recommended camera gear
• Promo Codes:
  LensRentals.com - WildPhotographer15 for 15% off
  ShimodaDesigns.com - Whelan10 for 10% off
  Arthelper.Ai - WILD for 30 day free trial of Pro Version

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If you are ready to take the leap and move away from using the full auto setting on your camera, I commend you.  And you will be happy you did so, because your photos, and your general creativity, will shine! 

In this episode I walk you through the various "next steps" if you are ready to move toward greater creative control.  The best part of this is that you do NOT have to immediately jump to Aperture or Manual modes to take the first step.  For instance, P or Program mode is a fantastic way to start experimenting with exposure compensation, white balance, and metering modes.  I'll walk you through all this.  Aperture and shutter speed priority modes add in one more opportunity, to control the depth of field and shutter of your camera. 

Finally, I give you my personal style for using manual in a unique way that gets me sharp photos, at the exact depth of field I'm envisioning, with less work and better photos than ever before.

Take that first step and enter a big world of awesome possibilities!

My Full Camera Kit:
Canon R5 Body
Canon 16-35mm f/2.8
Canon 24-105mm f/4
Canon 100-500mm f/4.5-7.1

• Check out Court’s photography and conservation work: CourtWhelan.com
• Follow Court Whelan (@courtwhelan) on YouTube for more photography tips
• Sign up for Court's conservation, travel and photography blog at www.courtwhelan.com
• View Court's recommended camera gear
• Promo Codes:
  LensRentals.com - WildPhotographer15 for 15% off
  ShimodaDesigns.com - Whelan10 for 10% off
  Arthelper.Ai - WILD for 30 day free trial of Pro Version

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Gosh I wish this existed when I was learning photography!  Today I go over 10 different "photo jargon" terms that will help you understand photography better.  This isn't only designed to help you talk the talk, but also to help you better learn from tutorials, photo guides, and fellow photographers that might use these terms around you. 

This one is straight to the point--learning definitions can be fun, right?

My Full Camera Kit:
Canon R5 Body
Canon 16-35mm f/2.8
Canon 24-105mm f/4
Canon 100-500mm f/4.5-7.1
Canon 100mm f/2.8

• Check out Court’s photography and conservation work: CourtWhelan.com
• Follow Court Whelan (@courtwhelan) on YouTube for more photography tips
• Sign up for Court's conservation, travel and photography blog at www.courtwhelan.com
• View Court's recommended camera gear
• Promo Codes:
  LensRentals.com - WildPhotographer15 for 15% off
  ShimodaDesigns.com - Whelan10 for 10% off
  Arthelper.Ai - WILD for 30 day free trial of Pro Version

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Drew is on an endless quest to photograph the world's "charismatic megafauna," as he calls it.  But while his portfolio is filled with some of the best bear photography we've ever seen...sparring polar bears in the Canadian Arctic and brown (grizzly) bears fishing for salmon in Alaska are just a couple examples, it doesn't always come easy.

Today we host the great Drew Hamilton himself and talk about a variety of nature photography topics, including his latest photo expedition in Nome, Alaska, what happens when photo trips don't quite work out, his technique for photo stitching wildlife shots, his affinity for reverse-engineering inspiring photos he sees on social media, and why sometimes he forces himself to take only one lens with him in the field. 

• Check out Court’s photography and conservation work: CourtWhelan.com
• Follow Court Whelan (@courtwhelan) on YouTube for more photography tips
• Sign up for Court's conservation, travel and photography blog at www.courtwhelan.com
• View Court's recommended camera gear
• Promo Codes:
  LensRentals.com - WildPhotographer15 for 15% off
  ShimodaDesigns.com - Whelan10 for 10% off
  Arthelper.Ai - WILD for 30 day free trial of Pro Version

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Composition is king.  It is absolutely critical that your final photo (after editing and whatnot) has great composition or else it's a big miss.  It will miss the opportunity to make a powerful first imrpression--the WOW factor--and also miss on the lasting power of great art.

Fortunately, composition is something that can be mastered both in-camera as well as when processing and editing your photos. 

Join me in this episode to get the full download on composition...what to think about when lining up a shot, how to pivot, advanced composition techniques, and camera settings that will help give you maximum flexibility to nail perfect composition each and every time.

My Full Camera Kit:
Canon R5 Body
Canon 16-35mm f/2.8
Canon 24-105mm f/4
Canon 100-500mm f/4.5-7.1
Canon 100mm f/2.8

• Check out Court’s photography and conservation work: CourtWhelan.com
• Follow Court Whelan (@courtwhelan) on YouTube for more photography tips
• Sign up for Court's conservation, travel and photography blog at www.courtwhelan.com
• View Court's recommended camera gear
• Promo Codes:
  LensRentals.com - WildPhotographer15 for 15% off
  ShimodaDesigns.com - Whelan10 for 10% off
  Arthelper.Ai - WILD for 30 day free trial of Pro Version

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Our first interview is with none other than the Colby Brokvist.  He wears a lot of hats, including premier Expedition Leader in polar regions of the world, conservation biologist, all around outdoorsman and backcountry aficionado.  But what he quickly says what he identifies with perhaps what he enjoys most is being a Travel Photographer.

Tune in here and get a glimpse into the brain of one of the greats and learn about his favorite animal to photography, that time he was 30 feet above a sailboat in Antarctica, and his unique perspectives when it comes to being thoughtful with nature, wildlife, conservation, and travel photography.

• Check out Court’s photography and conservation work: CourtWhelan.com
• Follow Court Whelan (@courtwhelan) on YouTube for more photography tips
• Sign up for Court's conservation, travel and photography blog at www.courtwhelan.com
• View Court's recommended camera gear
• Promo Codes:
  LensRentals.com - WildPhotographer15 for 15% off
  ShimodaDesigns.com - Whelan10 for 10% off
  Arthelper.Ai - WILD for 30 day free trial of Pro Version

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There's nothing bigger, more exciting, or more monumental than a photo safari to Africa.  Get the low down from Court on key pieces of gear that you may or may not be thinking of to ensure it's the photographic adventure of a lifetime.

My Full Camera Kit:
Canon R5 Body
Canon 16-35mm f/2.8
Canon 24-105mm f/4
Canon 100-500mm f/4.5-7.1
Canon 100mm f/2.8

• Check out Court’s photography and conservation work: CourtWhelan.com
• Follow Court Whelan (@courtwhelan) on YouTube for more photography tips
• Sign up for Court's conservation, travel and photography blog at www.courtwhelan.com
• View Court's recommended camera gear
• Promo Codes:
  LensRentals.com - WildPhotographer15 for 15% off
  ShimodaDesigns.com - Whelan10 for 10% off
  Arthelper.Ai - WILD for 30 day free trial of Pro Version

Send us a text

Wildlife photography is my jam!  It's one of the most exciting kinds of photography out there. Just being amongst the world's greatest animals is thrilling...capturing them in the camera for a lifetime of memories is even better.

As we all strive toward better photos, understanding your camera settings for each type of photography is becoming more and more important. I've distilled this down into the three most important settings (in my opinion) as they pertain to wildlife photography.

In this episode I go into detail on the proper focus settings, drive mode (aka frame rate) and the aperture/shutter speed balance for superb wildlife photography.  Sit back and let's adventure together into the world of wildlife photography!

My Full Camera Kit:
Canon R5 Body
Canon 16-35mm f/2.8
Canon 24-105mm f/4
Canon 100-500mm f/4.5-7.1

• Check out Court’s photography and conservation work: CourtWhelan.com
• Follow Court Whelan (@courtwhelan) on YouTube for more photography tips
• Sign up for Court's conservation, travel and photography blog at www.courtwhelan.com
• View Court's recommended camera gear
• Promo Codes:
  LensRentals.com - WildPhotographer15 for 15% off
  ShimodaDesigns.com - Whelan10 for 10% off
  Arthelper.Ai - WILD for 30 day free trial of Pro Version