How to carry out an assignment for a geographic magazine – Part 2 – Being in the moment

Esther BeatonAustralian Geographic, Behind the Scenes, Bird Images, Environment, Habitats, Nature and Wildlife, Nature Photography, New South Wales, On the Beaton Track, People Photography, Photography Techniques, Professional Photography2 Comments

I started shooting the story on pearl faming in New South Wales before I’d even signed the contract with the magazine. That was because a key event was happening immediately – an event that could not be rescheduled or wait for the convenience of a photographer — seeding the oysters.  On one beautiful warm morning, as the first flush of … Read More

Victoria’s Coast and Photo Tip: Charming the Birds

Esther BeatonBird Images, Bird photography, Habitats, On the Beaton Track, Photography Techniques, Quick Tips, VictoriaLeave a Comment

There are some great bird photography locations in Victoria, but during my January trip the drought was playing havoc, with days of unexpected rain, paralytic heat, and dust storms. But even with a little persistence, even in the worst of weather you can still find a few plucky birds. The scenery along the shores of Western Port Bay, might not … Read More

Wildlife Photographers to Follow

Esther BeatonAnnouncements, Beautiful Images, Bird Images, In The Media, Nature and Wildlife, Wildlife PhotographyLeave a Comment

I’M FEELING PROUD AS PUNCH     I’ve been given another nice “award”. I’m very honoured to be considered one of “25 Amazing Wildlife Photographers to Follow”. You can read the blog post here at Loaded Landscapes. They sell some great Lightroom presets and have very knowledgeable articles in their blog too. As a matter of fact – it is … Read More

Think the Reciprocal Rule is safe? It fails with high resolution cameras

Esther BeatonBird Images, Photography Techniques, Photography Workshops, Quick Tips, Wildlife PhotographyLeave a Comment

Tawny Frogmouth (Podargus strigoides) on nest among casuarina trees, Lake Tuggerah, Central Coast, New South Wales

The reciprocal rule is handy to know when you are hand-holding your camera, especially with a long lens attached. It states “always use a shutter speed whose reciprocal is faster than the focal length of the lens”. So if you’re hand-holding a 500 mm lens, you have to use a shutter speed of 1/500 or faster. I still don’t fully trust … Read More

28 Best Reasons to do Bird Photography

Esther BeatonBird Images, Photography Techniques, Photography Workshops, Wildlife PhotographyLeave a Comment

Cattle Egret (Bubulcus ibis) (subspecies coromandus) at nesting site, in willow tree, farm dam, Dooralong, Central Coast, New South Wales

Bird photography is the most challenging, difficult, expensive and time-consuming of all the areas of nature photography. Why on earth would anyone want to go to all that trouble? But something’s going on, because not only is there a rapid rise in bird watching, but also in nature and wildlife photography. If you’re not already on trend, maybe some of these … Read More

The exhibition wraps up!

Esther BeatonBird Images, Buying, using art, Exhibitions & Artworks, Nature and Wildlife, What they're saying, Wildlife PhotographyLeave a Comment

Many tourists and visitors to the Noble Spirit exhibition at Palm House, Royal Botanic Garden Sydney, Australia.

What a great exhibition!   Hundreds of tourists, both domestic an international, went through the Palm House – that little jewel of a gallery tucked within the royal Botanic Gardens in Sydney. Their comments in my visitor’s book and on tape confirm how amazed and delighted they were by the wildlife portraits. In addition, the ‘Noble Spirit’ exhibition was visited … Read More

You are invited…

Esther BeatonAnnouncements, Beautiful Images, Bird Images, Exhibitions & Artworks, Fine Art, Nature and Wildlife, Wildlife PhotographyLeave a Comment

Wedge-tailed Eagle portrait. Noble Spirit

…to attend my latest exhibition “Noble Spirit”. Once again, I’m at the renowned Palm House, a little jewel of a gallery tucked in the middle of the Botanic Gardens in Sydney. This latest series of artworks features some of my best images captured over many years of travels throughout Australia. But with a difference. They no longer look like “straight” … Read More

5x Growth – a Conservation Success Story

Esther BeatonBehind the Scenes, Bird Images, Conservation, Ecology, Environment, New South Wales, Professional Photography, Threatened species2 Comments

Gould's Petrel chick

Several years ago, I partnered up with science writer Karen McGee to produce a feature on Gould’s Petrel for the UK magazine, Geographical. Most stories of endangered species I find confronting, but this one turned out to have a happy ending. Gould’s Petrel nests almost exclusively on a tiny bunch of rocks off the coast of New South Wales. One of them is … Read More

Don’t frame too tight

Esther BeatonBird Images, Cute Animals, Nature and Wildlife, New South Wales, Photography Techniques, Quick Tips, Wildlife PhotographyLeave a Comment

Sometimes, when I’ve been judging photo competitons, I’ve had to evaluate an image where the subject in the photo is wedged so tight in the frame that you get an uncomfortable feeling looking at it. When I’ve commented that “there’s no room to breathe” the photographer usually rebuts me by saying “but I’ve been criticised in the past for not cropping tight enough!” … Read More