Five Compositional Ideas for Bird Photography

Some principles apply to every genre of photography, including many of the creative and compositional techniques that you use. However, I find that each genre has its own nuances and differences. Today, I’d like to share five compositional techniques that are especially relevant in bird photography. These aren’t rules – instead, they are ideas that encourage you to experiment and flex your creativity when photographing birds.

1. Dividing the Frame

If the bird is sitting on a long branch – or on another long object like a fence or a wire – your composition will be divided into at least two parts. When composing, you have a lot of freedom on how the line will divide the frame. Does it go through the center? Is it flat or diagonal? How much space does it leave on both sides? How does it interact with the background?

Different ways of dividing the frame can lead to new feelings in your bird photos. Next time you find a bird on a branch, remember this visual divide, and experiment with different ways of composing it!

See how this isn’t a rule? It’s more of a way to be aware of an important high-level concept in a scene, and make a conscious choice about where to put it.

2. Including Environmental or Behavioral Elements

I love portraits of birds, but I also love shots that include environment or behavior. These photos tell you something about the species, and that can be especially interesting. (That’s especially true when showing photos to people who aren’t as obsessed about birds as I am.)

Of course, portrait-style photos do often give subtle hints about the behavior and ecology of birds, too. Feather structure, color, and overall body structure always whisper of mysteries to be revealed. But sometimes a stronger message is best, and environment and behavior can really accentuate the dynamism and life in the animal world. Carefully look for these elements when you spot a bird, and decide how to best convey them in a photo.

3. Using Color

Birds have such a variety of every color, so don’t let it go to waste! For instance, I like this Anhinga photo against the blue sky, because I like the contrast between blue and yellow:

But, a blue sky doesn’t complement every type of bird in the same way. Sometimes, a bird’s colors pair better with green foliage or a brown tree trunk.

Especially when there are lots of birds around, I like to selectively choose shots based on the color combinations that are possible. The Anhinga that I just showed you is a dark bird that works well against the bright sky; meanwhile, the Night Heron below works well in the trees:

This photo has a spotlight effect, with the brighter bird hiding in the trees. It is also a high contrast look, which makes the photo seem moody. Of course, it’s not just the color that plays a role here: even the form of the bird looks a little moody, being all bunched up and staring out into the void. However, if the dark Anhinga from the previous photo were in a spot like this, then the photo’s color palette would be very dark, and it may be difficult to tell what was happening in the photo.

4. Paying Attention Background Changes

A small change in your camera position or angle can affect how the subject appears in the photo. We all know that. But because the background is even farther away, the background is even more affected by a change in camera angle! And it’s very noticeable with the long lenses used for bird photography.

Paying attention to what happens with the background is so important when you look through the viewfinder. It’s especially important because chances are, you’ll be so focused on your subject that you might forget the background. Let’s take the following example:

In this scene, there were some very bright leaves in the background near the bottom of the frame. They’re not shown in the photo, because I positioned the camera slightly lower and pointed up to exclude them from the composition! Often, after I find a good subject, I spend most of my time focusing on the background and how it can complement the subject, even more than the amount of time I spend on the subject itself. The goal is creating a composition in which nothing takes away from the photo.

5. Never Being Afraid to Experiment

With millions of bird photos that could burrow their way into your subconscious, it’s so easy to switch to “automatic mode” and just take photos in a certain set of styles you’ve seen before. I’m guilty of this, too. It’s even harder because birds are usually not…cooperative, and so any shot is better than none, right?

But don’t succumb to mindless shooting! Venture into strange compositional territory, especially when you’re in the company of a relatively tame bird willing to sit around for a while, or when you see a species you’ve photographed even more than your cat.

The following photo is one of my favorite experiments, taken in São Paulo. I saw a Southern Lapwing, and I wanted to convey the idea of “goodbye” since it was getting close to the time where I was leaving Brazil.

I knew I wasn’t going to see the Southern Lapwing for a while, and it made me sad because they’re on my top ten list of birds. I thus framed the head sticking out of the bottom of the frame, looking away from the viewer (but turned to the side just enough to still see the eye). It really gives me the feeling of “goodbye,” or perhaps as the Brazilians say, “saudade.”

Conclusion

Composing to convey feelings and sensations is not an easy thing. I’ll admit that sometimes I forget to think as much as I should when I’m out there. But when I do take a little extra time to pay attention to what really stands out and attracts my interest, I always feel that I get more interesting photos. So next time you’re out there, let those mystical elements of color and form and shape sink into your mind and then figure out how you’d like to best portray them!