My go-to camera settings for WILDLIFE PHOTOGRAPHY! Early morning and late afternoon.

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As nice as it would be, unfortunately there's no single set of default settings that you can use for every sighting you have when you are photographing wildlife on safari. You have to adjust your camera settings based on what you see - the light, the subject and your goal with the photo could all influence what settings you choose in a specific situation.

Having said this, it definitely helps to leave on game drive with a good set of go-to settings, both early mornings and late in the afternoon.

Early in the morning, when the light is still very low, I stay in Aperture Priority and typically choose the lowest f-stop my lens allows (f/4 or f/5.6 on most lenses), a relatively high ISO (usually 1600 or 3200). The low f-stop lets in a lot of light, allowing the camera to choose the fastest shutter speed for the conditions, and the high ISO makes the camera's sensor nice and light sensitive. I also make sure that my exposure compensation is on zero, that my auto focus mode is in AI Servo/AF-C (focus tracking), that my focus point is in the middle and that I have high continuous activated on the drive mode. This way, if we bump into a leopard or lion early in the morning, I can simply pick up my camera and start shooting without worrying about my settings. The go-to settings above gives you a great chance of getting a sharp photo in low light, providing you hold your camera nice and still.

When I head out in the afternoon, I use exactly the same settings, but instead of using a high ISO, I drop it to about 400 since the conditions would be a lot brighter than early in the morning. As it gets darker, though, I increase my ISO as necessary.

Throughout the drive I adjust things like the aperture value (to influence the depth of field) and the exposure compensation (to adjust the image brightness).

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[thehoundofthegamingvilles]

I've got one of 'those' friends who pretend that they know everything about every subject, but they actually don't. So that friend of mine, who doesn't know even the 'W' of wildlife photography asked me, "Do you know any wildlife photography teachers?" And I replied, "Wildlife photography is a subject which cannot be taught, you'll have to master it on your own. However I can recommend you a few channels" And you know whom I recommended to him? YOU!!!

[jimbrown]

Simple, straightforward, and Practical info...as always. Especially appreciate the adjustments made throughout the day.

[sportsshooter]

M Mode with AUTO ISO and use exposure compensation in AUTO ISO as required.

[zzdry]

very informative, getting ready for my Mara expedition in December

[namastelounge]

I was looking for your video on night time settings !

[unluckyyyyyyy]

Informative, will give it a bash, thanks!

[lynnlopresti]

Very helpful video!! Thank you for sharing!

[jeanrobins]

Thank you ! We are going to the Kruger in September, so that was incredibly helpful ! Your photography is amazing ! If my photos are a fraction as good as yours, I will be very happy !

[NaturallyNikita]

Great video and explanations thank you

[XI-vzzp]

Awsome 1st ! Thank you for the video!!

[felixifloresrodriquez]

Awesome video as always. I watched your course and learned a great deal thanks

[jimmyjames]

Hi, thank you for those tips. I’m going to a game drive next month. Which camera can you suggest and do I really need a telephoto lens?

[steveboice]

Fully Manual - If I know I'm just shooting wildlife, I typically start out with the lowest Aperture my lens has, a fast enough shutter speed (typically at least 1/800th of a second), and then adjust ISO accordingly. Occasionally I'll use Auto ISO. The most important aspect is sharpness, so I would use Shutter Priority over Aperture Priority mode.

[rodc]

Excellent video. Intrigued what lens you used for the first shot if the leopard kill?

[erikkie]

Great video! I will bring a Sigma 60-600mm F4-F6.3 and a Sigma 70-200mm F2.8 with my Nikon D7500. The first for daylight, the latter for early mornings and evenings. I read reviews about stopping down one or two stops to improve image quality. Would that be your advice as well, or would you shoot wide open?

[alissarothstein]

Thank you for this video. As a newer photographer, I am learning and watching videos like these really help. I have a question. When you use a teleconverter, how do you adjust your settings. I have a 1.4x and I know that you lose exposure by one stop. I have a sigma 150-600mm lens and on a clear day, I normally shoot F4 and 400 ISO. What would you suggest?

[tigershoot]

Was that leopard kill at Buffelshoek? I am a Pentax user and as such I use a mode that changes the ISO within a prescribed range as the light changes. The shutter speed and f-stop are set and don't then change. I use 500th and the max aperture of the lens which varies from F4 to F5.6. The lens is the 150-450mm Pentax. I have a second body with the 16-85mm as I never changes lenses once out.
Another reason to be knowledgable about your setttings and the camera is for those moments when you have accidentally changed something, but then lack the knowledge to know what you have done!

[lynnlopresti]

Again, this video is super helpful! I am trying to figure out what the equivalent settings would be for a micro 4/3 camera (as I understand your settings are for a full frame camera). If you shoot with the settings f5.6 and ISO 1600 on a full frame camera, is that f2.8 and ISO 400 on a Micro 4/3 camera? 😃

[kashanti]

How would you go about customizing this on the camera so the settings are saved?

[kindcats]

Very informative, I usually used speed priority but see the benifits of aperture and will use that next trip. What attracts me to your channel is your excellent videos and reviews. Have you done any recommendations on how to shoot videos and setting for camera and sound? Thanks again