On 14th June 2024 at the British Wildlife Centre , I came face-to-face with the Harvest mouse & I was captivated with this amazing creature. It weighs between 4 to 11 grams with a long tail used for balance. The Harvest mouse is a protected species & as of 2019 the harvest mouse is protected under the 1981 Wildlife and Countryside Act of 1981 and the UK Post-2010 Biodiversity Framework: Implementation Plan.
I decided to photograph this lovable mouse with the fabulous Z 135mm f/1.8 Plena. This is the best 135mm I had used period !
The Plena is amazingly sharp wide open.
Every photographer that uses it just loves the circular bokeh quality even at the corners & edges of the frame.
I just love the Autofocus accuracy & tracking speed, It has the best AF tracking performance for a 135mm.
TIP: I love pairing the Plena with my Z8 or Z9 & use it in DX mode making it a 203mm f/1.8 focal length @19MP
Photography STRATEGY | Look for the most APPEALING light |
Click on thumbnail to view larger image
Photography STRATEGY | As CLEAN a background as possible |
This is where using the Plena provides an amazing advantage in rendering the creamiest background allowing the subjects to 'pop"
Photography STRATEGY | TIGHT vs. loose composition of the subject |
"force" the viewer to focus on the details or allow for more scale, perspective & environmental appreciation
Photography STRATEGY |capture unique subject BEHAVIOUR / ACTION |
Subject stretching , "playing hide & seek", raising it's little paw, peeking through the reeds, using it's tail in the case of the Harvest mouse.
Photography STRATEGY |CREATIVE presentation vs. DETAILS |
This is much more "complicated" and it depends on how you want to present / show off your subject. The 1st three in this gallery was captured at f/1.8 where depth of field would be at it's shallowest which can be a cool creative way to present the subject BUT the photographer needs to be very precise in the area of focus for the image to "work"
So depending how much depth/details I wanted to present , I varied betwen apertures between f/1.8 up to f/4.0
Bottomline photographing WIDE OPEN with the shallowest Depth-of-Field may NOT always be the BEST strategy ....... take note !!!
Photography STRATEGY |Be ALERT & AWARE of EVERYTHING |
Being alert & aware of where the light is falling , it's intensity vs. the subject's pose, checking if the background is clean , f-stop vs. depth of field needed vs. subject angle to camera, camera distance to subject, are you standing on safe ground, is your shutter speed enough ?, are your captures sharp enough ? & so on ....... there's so MANY factors to be aware of.
I had only a single 45mins. session with the harvest mouse & I was shooting together with 6 to 7 other photographers who were all encircling the subject so it's a challenge for sure.
Photography STRATEGY |Know what you WANT (composition wise) |
As always this is KEY !! Knowing what you want helps you:
strategise
helps you get your initial camera settings right
determine the type of lens you should be using
in knowing where to stand & position yourself
So it's really important , I cannot emphasise this more.
I hope you enjoyed this post and found it beneficial.
Just be aware that there is NO "RIGHT" way to photograph a scene or a subject, as always just use what I share as an alternative to what your preferred way (s) of approaching your photography.
Till the next blog, happy photography ...........
Comments