Canned Cameras? The scandal of tame wildlife photography (1 Viewer)

[rockfowl]

http://www.wildlifeextra.com/go/new...andal of tame wildlife photographycampaign#cr

 

[Apodemus]

Interesting but depressing comments after the article. They just don't get it.

 

[lmans66]

Ditto.....out there with all species of mammals and birds..

 

[redeyedvideo]

It's happening closer to home too. I've commented on pictures in the gallery only to find almost identical shots on a photography website with the comments "here's one I took at the BWC at the weekend".

If people want to take photos of captive animals or birds so be it but don't try to pass them off as anything else, those missing primaries usually give it away.

And as for the Lion in the snow, isn't that tantamount to animal cruelty?

 

[lmans66]

You can just about photoshop anything you want in or out of a picture. For instance, the background can be changed or enhanced etc. When is it that people have gone too far? I suppose only when they misrepresent something. If they don't represent it as 'anything' or come out and state they have photoshopped it, great...but otherwise, photoshop has made it unfair to those taking real shots.... or the real deal, in the real situation.... Right or wrong?

 

[jurek]

Any serious or semi-serious book should identify non-wild animals. Just a word: captive - together with photographers name. It would solve all problems.

BTW, captive animal photography needs not to be bad. Most non-wild photos don't come from animal models. There are native animal parks, breeding centres in fenced habitats, wild animals caught during scientific study, tame orphaned animals being exercised...

BTW - a pin - photographing wild animals is getting difficult. Conservationists love hypocrisy of draconian restrictions for tourists, when local poachers have a free run.

 

[tjsimonsen]

And as for the Lion in the snow, isn't that tantamount to animal cruelty?

Nah, it's due to human activities that there are no lions in the mountains of Balkan, Turkey, and the Caucasus today!

Thomas

 

[Jaff]

There was an article in May's BBC Wildlife magazine by Mark Carwadine that covered all of this ground, might be online somewhere, it was titled "The Truth About Wildlife Photography".
Many 'true' photographers feel very strongly about the use of captive animals and birds for photography as it undermines the efforts of proper wildlife photographers. Now in certain circumstances it is quite acceptable really but the bottom line is if you don't state that it is a captive animal then people assume it's a wild animal if you call yourself a wildlife photographer, anything else just adds up to stone cold decption and any tog found out in that way will lose all credibilty as all the rest of their work will be then viewed with suspicion, even if it is indeed genuine.

Quite simply they'd be labelled charlatans. *cough* Graham Eaton! *cough*

BTW those aren't just my thoughts but what Mark himself said in the article.

 

[hollis_f]

The next step will be to shoot these aimals in the zoo then photoshop them into an appropriate location.

 

[paul goode]

The next step will be to shoot these aimals in the zoo then photoshop them into an appropriate location.

Its already happening

 

[scary-canary]

There was an article in May's BBC Wildlife magazine by Mark Carwadine that covered all of this ground, might be online somewhere, it was titled "The Truth About Wildlife Photography".
Many 'true' photographers feel very strongly about the use of captive animals and birds for photography as it undermines the efforts of proper wildlife photographers. Now in certain circumstances it is quite acceptable really but the bottom line is if you don't state that it is a captive animal then people assume it's a wild animal if you call yourself a wildlife photographer, anything else just adds up to stone cold decption and any tog found out in that way will lose all credibilty as all the rest of their work will be then viewed with suspicion, even if it is indeed genuine.

Quite simply they'd be labelled charlatans. *cough* Graham Eaton! *cough*

BTW those aren't just my thoughts but what Mark himself said in the article.

Have you got any evidence that Graham Eaton is a charlatan? I've just looked on his website and his pictures are excellent. Seems a bit dodgy calling him on here

 

[tjsimonsen]

There was an article in May's BBC Wildlife magazine by Mark Carwadine that covered all of this ground, might be online somewhere, it was titled "The Truth About Wildlife Photography".
Many 'true' photographers feel very strongly about the use of captive animals and birds for photography as it undermines the efforts of proper wildlife photographers. Now in certain circumstances it is quite acceptable really but the bottom line is if you don't state that it is a captive animal then people assume it's a wild animal if you call yourself a wildlife photographer, anything else just adds up to stone cold decption and any tog found out in that way will lose all credibilty as all the rest of their work will be then viewed with suspicion, even if it is indeed genuine.

I once got the following advice from a pro photographer/tour organizer: there is nothing wrong in photographing animals in a zoo or in semi-captivity. The photos can be great, and it is often a good learning experience. But you should always be honest about the circumstances in which the photo was taken.

I do not have a problem with images of captive/semi wild animals as long as it is made clear where and how the photo was taken. After all it isn't much different from "wild" animals that have learned to come to feeding places and "pose" for the photographers. Some of the images I have posted elsewhere are indeed of captive/escape animals, including ducks in Kew Gardens. I just write that and people can make up their own minds.

Thomas

 

[Wildmoreway]

I do not have a problem with images of captive/semi wild animals as long as it is made clear where and how the photo was taken. After all it isn't much different from "wild" animals that have learned to come to feeding places and "pose" for the photographers. Some of the images I have posted elsewhere are indeed of captive/escape animals, including ducks in Kew Gardens. I just write that and people can make up their own minds.

Thomas

The important thing is to be honest about the origin and circumstances of the photograph and to make allowances for the poorer technical quality of a spontanious shot taken in a genuinely "wild" situation.

SW

 

[Jaff]

I once got the following advice from a pro photographer/tour organizer: there is nothing wrong in photographing animals in a zoo or in semi-captivity. The photos can be great, and it is often a good learning experience. But you should always be honest about the circumstances in which the photo was taken.

I do not have a problem with images of captive/semi wild animals as long as it is made clear where and how the photo was taken. After all it isn't much different from "wild" animals that have learned to come to feeding places and "pose" for the photographers. Some of the images I have posted elsewhere are indeed of captive/escape animals, including ducks in Kew Gardens. I just write that and people can make up their own minds.

Thomas

Erm... didn't I say that? Pretty sure I did.

As for GE there is a pretty famous thread in the rare bird section about a Snowy Owl that'll tell you all you need to know. It's like i said, if you get caught up in any kind of shennigans then all the rest of your work becomes suspect even if it is actualy genuine. He's as good an example as you will come across for this IMO.

Adam

 

[Chris Galvin]

Have you got any evidence that Graham Eaton is a charlatan? I've just looked on his website and his pictures are excellent. Seems a bit dodgy calling him on here

This is the thread that will explain how Graham Eaton was exposed

http://www.birdforum.net/showthread.php?t=132585&highlight=Snowy+Owl

 

[tjsimonsen]

Erm... didn't I say that? Pretty sure I did.

Adam

No need for me to shut up just because I agree with you 8-P

 

[Jaff]

No need for me to shut up just because I agree with you 8-P

I think we've had some crossed wires here.

So long as we're now on the same page. :t:

 

[lmans66]

The next step will be to shoot these aimals in the zoo then photoshop them into an appropriate location.

But if the photographer presents them as such....nothing wrong with that....

 

[hollis_f]

Hah! I've just had some cretinous moron on another forum suggest that a picture of a lion I'd taken in Africa must be a captive animal because it looked too healthy. Fortunately I've got a complete series of images, with one taken at a relative wide angle.