We haven’t been having much summery weather in Glasgow recently. There are obvious downsides to a lack of light and ridiculously heavy downpours, but today I want to focus on one of the more positive aspects of the heavy rain showers we’ve been having. So, today’s post is all about using the adverse weather conditions to make an otherwise fairly dull image more interesting.
Now, I think we can all agree that falling snow can add a good amount of drama and atmosphere to an otherwise ‘standard’ wildlife portrait, but rain can be a bit trickier. I’ve always tried to avoid photographing in the rain, but after reading a few posts from photographers I admire and seeing the images of wildlife they’ve captured in rain showers I was inspired to give it a try. The ideal opportunity presented itself a couple of weeks ago during a day of persistent heavy rain. I was taking a break from the day job for a few minutes and was staring out of the window of our dining room at the deluge when I spotted a jackdaw perched on one of the street lights on our road. By pulling the window wide open, I could point my camera over at the slightly sodden bird and was able some shots with the rain streaking down all around it. It didn’t take much effort to achieve – I didn’t even have to go outside! However, I think the rain has turned what would otherwise be a fairly uninteresting urban wildlife image into something a bit different. I have also converted a couple of images from the same set into black and white, as you can see below.
Since I captured this, I have also been outside with the new waterproof cover on my camera and got thoroughly soaked. Although I don’t have any decent images to share from that session, it felt great to get out and feel enthusiastic about and inspired by the adverse weather conditions for once!
Anyway, I hope this has encouraged you to get outside (or stay indoors!) and shoot even during the wettest weather.