Tip #32. Follow the leaders

To get inspiration for good images look at what professional wildlife photographers are showcasing. Study their images to get a better idea of animal behavior, composition, and lighting. Websites and galleries are superb for viewing great images. When visiting SW Florida I came across several really great images in a gallery from a professional photographer of pairs of egrets in the air in a dance-like formation. To emulate this composition, I visited the Audubon Rookery in Venice, Florida. Although the herons and egrets were spending most of their time working on their nests, from time to time there seemed to be a courting dance between different birds. I positioned myself and camera in an area where I could hopefully capture the ritual with a very neutral background. Being this focused on what I was hoping to achieve caused me to miss other opportunities, but finally the dance occurred in the right area and I got this shot.