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Grip and Grin Photo Tips

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Grip and Grin Photo Tips

Postby Tigger » 11 09, 2021 •  [Post 1]

I thought I would start a thread where people could post their tips on how to take good pictures after the kill. Once you start doing it, you will cringe at the pictures you see of other hunters and think to yourself, "If only they would have.....". So with that, add your tips!

1. Prep the animal. Clean off the blood or photograph the other side of the animal. Put its tongue back in its mouth. Put it on its stomach and tuck in the legs. This can be hard if rigor has set it, but figure out a way. you only get one crack at this and the tailgate picture will not be as nice as in the field. Look at where it is laying, should you move it 10 feet? Good luck with this one if you just shot a bull moose, but for deer sized game it may make sense.
2. Position the animal so that the picture is taken with the sun either in the face of the hunter or slightly off to the side. Do NOT take pictures if the sun is at their back. Shadows across their face are not good and all the colors will be washed out.
3. Consider the background. What do you want as the backdrop of the picture? Position so you can capture it.
4. Take lots of pictures from different angles and different distances
5. Get the camera LOW! Many great angles come from a low angle. The antlers have the sky as the background which make the pop out.
6. What are the background of the antlers? If it isn't the sky, then use the snow in the background or something. Camo jackets are horrible background for antlers. Blaze orange works well sometimes. The antlers have to have something behind them that makes them both stand out. Many times, this means positioning the hunter way back towards the rump and reaching up to hold the near side antlers.
7. Use as little hand and fingers as you can to hold the antlers. avoid the big old stick....that usually doesn't look good.
8. Now you have the positioning down, experiment with dropping the nose of the animal a little. Like it? Maybe raise it a little. try different things. Move it left or right to show off the antlers better.
9. Fill the frame with your intended subject. But capture the background. Don't cut off the antlers or the head of the person.
10. Use Portrait mode. Fill in the flash if you can.
11. If you want the firearm or bow in the picture, position it so it is subtle and not the focus of the picture. ALWAYS use an unloaded gun that shows the open action and is not pointed at someone.
12. Nighttime lighting is hard. If you can, put a low power light on the entire area. Not bright. Just enough to help that flash out. You still want the flash of your camera to do the most work. This may take some experimenting. best if the light is coming from high up. a flashlight that has an adjustable beam is perfect. Hold it up high with the broadest beam setting.
13. Check the background for garbage, vehicles, packs, coats, gloves, etc. remove all that stuff so the only thing in the picture is the animal and the hunter.
14. Yeah, the hunter may not look the best after a hard day hunting, but tuck in stray hair, straighten the hat, arrange the coats and under layers so they look good around the head and the neck. Don't have a base layer collar over the outside layer on one side and not the other.
15. If blaze orange is required for hunting, then take some with blaze orange. If you want to post on social media, use those pictures so people don't jump all over you for not wearing orange. Feel free to take pictures without for your personal use, but hang up your orange prominently just outside the photo area while taking pictures so you are safe.
16. Smile! Be upbeat! This is a time for celebration and it will show in the pictures if you have a good attitude.
17. Take some pictures of everyone who was involved in the hunt.
18. Experiment with having the hunter looking somewhere other than the camera. Looking at the animal is a good one.
19. If you have to pack the animal out on your back, some packing pictures are great. If you can, take a picture just as the load is put on the hunter. Many times the facial expression at that time can be awesome! Skyline pictures of the pack out can be cool.
20. You can actually start the process of taking better pictures right now. As you see grip and grin pictures, ask yourself what they could have done different.

What other tips do people have?
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Tigger
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Re: Grip and Grin Photo Tips

Postby 7mmfan » 11 09, 2021 •  [Post 2]

Good tips Tigger. Getting low, getting close, and getting the light right are the most critical. All the other components come together to make content better. As we all know, lighting in the woods can be tough.
I hunt therefore I am. I fish therefore I lie.
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7mmfan
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Re: Grip and Grin Photo Tips

Postby Swede » 11 09, 2021 •  [Post 3]

The pros do not want any blood in their pictures for publication. I don't mind a little, but do not want a gory mess either. Get the tongue back in the mouth. Remember you are displaying your trophy.
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Re: Grip and Grin Photo Tips

Postby Jhg » 11 10, 2021 •  [Post 4]

I would add, especially with bears, don't do the place the hunter 5 feet behind the animal to make it appear huge in perspective thing. It is an over used, often ill-considered technique that only serves to bring attention to a falsehood. I hate seeing it over and over again, as if we all don't know how staged it is.
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