18 Photographers Share Their Incredible Stories on Nature and Wildlife Photography

Photograph/Erlend Haarberg

Erlend Haarberg A professional for almost two and a half decades, Erlend focuses primarily on birds and mammals. He has been extensively published in National Geographic, BBC Wildlife Magazine and Terre Sauvage—Vivre la Nature, amongst many other publications.

“I wanted three elements—a high tide, so that the birds would be corralled up the shore; waves big enough to create a graphic pattern; and early morning or late afternoon light, so I could use a slow shutterspeed.”

In spring, thousands of red knots make a stopover in Iceland, before continuing their journey to their breeding grounds in Canada and Greenland. The seven days that I spent on a cliff at the Snæfellsnes peninsula, I kept observing the frenzied feeding flock below, as they scurried to and fro from the powerful crashing waves. What enthralled me to persevere for the photograph, was the combination of the resilience of the birds and the power of the sea. I experimented with different shutterspeeds and perspectives, each time struggling to keep my tripod from blowing over.

Camera: Nikon D700
Lens: Nikkor AF-S 24–70mm f/2.8G ED
Exposure: 1.6sec at f/7.1, ISO 400

Tip
Observe the Three Ps
Patience, perseverance and passion are the three prime qualities, central to nature and wildlife photography. The absence of any one of these will affect the quality of your photograph. The three Ps must  be then backe dup by the three Ts, technique, timing and lot of trial and error.