Top tips for a winning photo

1. Always carry your camera

It may sound obvious - but how many times have you seen a Kestrel hovering or a Great-crested Grebe courtship display and thought to yourself "If I'd had my camera, I could get got a good shot of that"?

Keeping your camera with you means you'll never miss a chance to get that winning photo, whether it's of an unexpected visitor to your garden, like a Waxwing or a Sparrowhawk, or a surprise seal when you're birding by the coast.

Learn how to change your ISO and focus modes quickly, and use autofocus and image stabilisation if your lens has this property.  

2. Get to know your equipment

Whether you are carrying a super telephoto lens of 500mm+ or a shorter zoom, knowing how your equipment works can help you catch a sharp image in surprise encounters.

That means learning how to quickly change your ISO (and knowing how high you can push it without significant impact on your photo) or focus modes on your camera. Use autofocus and if your lens has image stabilisation, make sure that is turned on - it will allow you to hold your camera and get sharp images in duller light. 

This is especially important for the birds you can't get close to, and indeed, for the birds you can get close to.

3. Get to know your bird

Whether you are taking photos of a Robin that comes into your garden or large animals while you are on safari, it's important to spend enough time with your subject.

Does the Song Thrush in the local park always sing from the same tree? Or perhaps you've noticed that a Water Rail always appears at dusk in a particular spot at your local nature reserve.

Spending time observing wildlife is one of the best ways to learn its habits, so you can be ready to capture the perfect shot.

If working with composition is new to you, try to keep your subject off-centre and looking into the frame.  

4. Think about composition

Try placing the focus of the photo - whether that's a preening Mallard, a perched Ruddy Darter dragonfly or a watchful fox - in different areas of the frame.

A good general rule is to keep your subject off-centre and looking into the frame, as this is often more aesthetically pleasing than when the subject sitting in the middle of your photo. 

5. Don’t be afraid to shoot wide (or up close!)

It is always tempting to fill as much of the frame as possible with the subject. However, stepping back to include its natural habitat may tell more of a story.

Similarly, getting close (whether it be physically closer or using larger lenses and converters) can help you capture more abstract images of part of the subject, which can be really eye-catching - think feathers, eyes, and the shape of a curving wing.