Why pose is so important

For me, pose is one of the most important elements in my images. My subjects pose can make or break an image, so much so that a great pose or behavior can make up for lackluster background or environment. The subjects pose can convey a mood in an image and can impart a sense of intention on our subjects.

Pose is a tricky thing, different types of wildlife require different poses for them to appear natural. For example, most birds have eyes on the side of their heads (raptors being the exception), so you don’t normally want to shoot them straight on, but more to the side or at an angle. If you shoot most birds looking straight at you, you will end up with some strange looking birds, as in these examples.

Snowy Egret, St. Augustine FL

American Bittern, Brazos Bend SP, TX

Don’t get me wrong, I like these two images, but mostly for their comic quality, this is not normally how you want to be shooting birds. For most birds images from the side will be more effective. However I would try not to shoot with their head at more than a 90 degree angle from you, but closer to a 45 degree angle, if possible.

So far we have talked about head position, but body position is just as important, however the optimal or better body positions will depend on the species you are shooting. Each bird species has different ways of perching, wading, flying, feeding, resting, etc. So you will have to study your subject and learn its behavior to photograph it in its normal or exemplary position. Additionally you want to look for an angle that best demonstrates your subjects body shape and shows any exemplary features if possible.

Let’s look at an example:

Northern Bobwhite, Roma TX

This is a nice portrait of a Bobwhite, a bird that spends most of it’s time on the ground foraging. Here we see it coming straight towards us, and because it’s eyes are on their side and it’s body is straight at us, we get very little idea of what this bird really looks like.

This image is a bit better. We see the Bobwhite turned it’s head so we can see what it looks like a bit better and make out some of it’s distinguishing characteristics. However it’s body is still coming straight at us so we do not have any idea of what this birds body looks like, and frankly it looks sort of flat to me.

In this last image, the bird has turned a bit and we get a much better picture of it. We can see more of its distinguishing characteristics and markings, specially on its head. With the body now turned a bit we can see much more of its body shape and get a much better idea of what this birds body and plumage looks like. As an added bonus, the position of its legs are such that they provide a sense of motion. Bonus!

Let’s compare the first image to the last.

I am sure you’ll agree that the second image tells you much more about this Bobwhite than the first.

With wildlife patience is key, after you get your first couple of “safe” shots, be patient, study the animal, pay attention to subtle changes in pose, and keep shooting the same species over and over again. I assure you the more you learn about a species the better your pictures will be. After all wildlife photography is all about patience and perseverance.

Here is another example of how subtle changes in pose can go a long ways to improving an image.

American Robin, Chatham County, NC

Nice image of an iconic North American species, good light and decent pose, but obviously the bird is looking away and because of this you miss quite a bit about this species.

At this point we simply waited a for more seconds and the bird turned it’s head in our direction producing a much better image, however I think this image could be even better. If you notice the expression on the Robin, it is one of vigilance, of being “on guard”, for me an image where the subject seems relaxed and in it’s element, more natural will always be more appealing, so we wait a little longer.

The change here is subtle, but the Robin is now looking down a bit and the head is a little tilted towards the viewer. If you know robins, you know they eat worms and grubs under the leaf litter, with it’s head looking slightly lower our subject now appears at ease, in it’s element, like it’s searching for it’s next meal.

Here is the before and after.

Just waiting a few minutes, knowing a bit about a species and looking for the right pose that is exemplary of a species, can go a long way in improving an image.

Now let’s talk a bit about wildlife who have eyes in the front of their heads, including raptors and most, but not all, mammals. These can be photographed both head on and from their sides, but in my opinion they will look best when their heads are at 45 degrees or less of an angle from you.

Here is a quick example:

Black Bear, Pocosin Lakes NWR, NC

This black bear at approximately 70-80 degrees from from me, and as such I can see her right eye clearly, but her left eye is obscured and not very visible. Compare that with this next image.

I like this image much better because I can see both of the bears eyes, and both have a good catchlight giving my subject more life. In addition by seeing both eyes the viewer is naturally more engaged with the subject, and vice-versa.

What about other species, you ask, well most reptiles and amphibians have eyes on their sides or close to their sides, but it only takes a quick glance at an animal to figure out what approach you should take.

It is very important to keep in mind that there are very few hard and fast rules in wildlife photography, everything I have written above should be considered as a guideline, as you can see from the image that is currently gracing the header of this website (Bull Moose swimming in Snake River) I don’t always follow these guidelines myself!

As always, any questions or comments use the comments section below or you can reach me via twitter at http://twitter.com/jpons.

Juan