About Jason Polak

Jason Polak is a bird and wildlife photographer from Ottawa, Canada. He has been interested in photography ever since he received a disposable film camera as a small child. His career as a mathematician led him to move to Australia in 2016, where he started seeing colorful parrots. A few casual shots with a lens completely unsuitable for birds got him hooked, and now wildlife photography is his biggest passion. Jason loves to show the beauty of animals to the world through photography, and one of his lifelong goals is to photograph five thousand species of birds. You can see more of Jason's work on his website or on his YouTube channel.

Post Archive By Jason Polak

Sony FE 28-70mm f/2 GM Announced

Along with the a1 II announced earlier today, Sony also released a new FE 28-70mm f/2 GM lens! Although there are already a few 28-70mm lenses for Sony E mount, such as the Sigma 28-70mm f/2.8 DG DN Contemporary, this will be the first with a very bright f/2 constant...

Sony a1 II Announced: The Evolution of a Beast

When it comes to top-of-the-line flagships, the Sony a1 of January 2021 was hard to beat with its 50MP sensor and amazing autofocus. Now, Sony has announced the Sony a1 II, the next step in the camera's evolution. The Sony a1 II improves upon its predecessor with and borrows some...

6 Tips for Wildlife Photography on a Sunny Day

If you asked me what my least favorite sort of light is for wildlife photography, it would be midday sun. When the sun is high in the sky, all sorts of problems occur. You get harsh shadows on the animals, harsh light in the background (translating to distracting bokeh), reduced...

The Current State of Nikon Z DX Cameras (2024)

Nikon has now released four Z-mount cameras with a DX sensor: the Z50, Zfc, Z30, and Z50 II. You may be wondering how all of them compare, especially with the new Z50 II shaking things up. In this article, I’ll show how all of these cameras stand side-by-side and explain some of the history behind them.

Deep in the Atlantic Forest of São Paulo

When wildlife photographers think of Brazil, they might think of the Amazon or Pantanal. And although these biodiversity hotspots are full of amazing animals, they are not the only places in the country for wildlife photography. They can even be touristy and highly guided at times. If you want to...

Nikon to Develop the Nikkor Z 28-135mm f/4 PZ

Nikon has just announced the development of the Nikkor Z 28-135mm f/4 PZ power zoom lens for full-frame Nikon Z-mount cameras. Although Nikon already has one power zoom lens for APS-C cameras, the Nikon Z DX 12-28mm f/3.5-5.6 PZ VR, this will be the first power zoom lens for their...

Why My Birds Aren’t Doing Anything

Over the years, I've received some criticism on my photography, and I think that's a good thing. I've appreciated all of it, because on the whole it has made me a better photographer. After all, I have so many blind spots where I just don't see problems. But there is...

The Quest for 5000 Birds

About four years ago, I came up with a simple goal: photograph 5000 species of birds. How did I even think of such a plan? It all began with two questions: What is that bird over there? How is that bird related to the others? Soon, I started keeping track...

Optimizing Shutter Speed in Bird Photography

When it comes to camera settings, shutter speed is the most important variable for bird photography. That’s because it’s the setting that you need to control the most. Optimizing your shutter speed is really the only way to maximize the amount of light you’re getting, while also freezing the bird’s motion.