By far my favorite!!!! :D Now I have to say I always thought y'all made a big deal out of this and I thought you guys were a bit over the top ... until I started doing this myself and I 100% agree now ... great post ... should be a sticky .... Greg/MO did one of these posts awhile back ... don't knock it till you try it
Good tips Patt,,If you dont mind me adding one,, If someone is taking them for you have them get low to the ground, not taking them donw on the subjects.
Great tips here guys and gals. Get low, shoot from different angles, change settings and take literally hundreds of pictures. The results can be well worth it.
Good tips, but I still think the ride-em-cowboy in the back of a messy truck bed is the best. Preferably, with the tongue hanging out.
Ok here's what I got. Lets nail down the list then we can make a new post with a sticky ! Greg that pic is hilarious Really good pics guys 1. TAKE THE PHOTOS OUTDOORS. If the deer was brought home before you found someone with a camera, take the deer outside for the photos. Nothing looks worse than a deer on the garage floor with cans, pails, lawn mowers and tires in the background. 2. TAKE THE DEER OFF THE CAR, OUT OF THE TRUNK OR OUT OF THE PICKUP TRUCK. ALSO, TAKE THE ANIMAL DOWN FROM THE TREE AND REMOVE THE ROPE. 3. SELECT A NEUTRAL BACKGROUND. In the excitement of taking trophy photos no one ever looks beyond the animal or hunter. Use an attractive background, like a evergreen tree, a screen of brush or hills and woods for the background. Find a color that will highlight the antlers - not hide them. Don’t let them blend into the background. 4. GET CLOSE - NOW GET CLOSER! All you need in the photo is the animal and the hunter. Make sure the subject fills the frame. Fill the viewfinder with the subject. Most photos used in the record book have at least 50% of the photo cropped off to remove empty background. 5. POSSIBLY TURN THE CAMERA SO THE PHOTO IS VERTICAL The hunter and the trophy will fill the frame and eliminate most of the empty background. It is also the format used for magazine covers and most framed pictures. 6. USE A FLASH ! Dramatic results often occur when subjects are highlighted and the background is totally black. All that you see is the desired subject. Be sure to stay far enough away from reflective objects so ghosts don’t start to appear in the background. 7. CLEAN UP THE BLOOD/TOUNGUE Please do your best to cut down on the gore factor. Wipe off excessive blood on the animal’s mouth and wound. And for the love of God, make sure you tuck his tongue back into his mouth. 8. POSITION THE ANILMAL Try to position the animal in the bedded position. The means legs tucked underneath to prop up the chest. If you can get the back legs under do that too. Otherwise lay them out behind the animal. Try to stage him so you can no longer see any of the white under belly. When possible take photos before field dressing. 9. GET LOW When taking trophy shots try to make sure your butt is on the ground. This makes the animal look bigger and results in a higher quality photo. Don’t kneel or squat, SIT on the ground. This goes for your cameraman too. Make sure you get down at eye level with the hunter, don’t take your photos from way up high. 10.GET MULTIPLE ANGLES Shoot from the side, in front, head turned left, head turned right. Shoot just about every photo you can imagine. You never know what is going to look the best so it’s better to have everything you can think of just to be safe. 11.Most importantly: Smile! Remember, this is fun! You just shot something! If you’re not smiling something is wrong with you. Just an FYI my pic won me a new DLC Covert trail camera and a new Mathews bow. So it was worth the effort to take some good pics :D
You need to revise the part about using the flash. You should use it ALL the time. Especially if the sun is overhead. When the sun is up it's throwing a huge shadow on the hunter's face caused by his hat. Using a flash will help fill in that space so you can see the smiling hunter. Flash is your friend!
12. Make sure you aren't wearing orange...and you don't have a gun...and you didn't kill a deer with a gun.
My favorite part about this thread is everyone posting photos of themselves as examples of good pictures. As they say vanity is a deadly sin....
Good tips guys...I didn't always try to get "quality" photos of my bucks when I was younger but I have tried to get better...here is a favorite of mine from 05
