Steve Moore-Vale Photography
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I have been into photography since about 2003 when
I moved from Essex to a small village in Norfolk.
I started with very basic gear, comprising of just a small point & Shoot
type camera. Not long after, having realised the limitations of this, I got
a Bridge Camera which had much greater zoom range. This became very useful
as my interest in wildlife was growing at a steady rate and the extra reach
on the camera, a Panasonic Lumix, was very handy indeed.
Then in the latter part of 2007 I got properly into
birdwatching and decided that I wanted to take my wildlife photography more
seriously and so I bought my first DSLR, a Canon 350D complete with a Canon
90-300 lens.
Once again my photography skill grew with the better gear I was using but a
photographers skill is not just down to the gear used, it's an artistic
skill you need to, and this is where I felt I was lacking. So I started to
concentrate on my compositional skills. This is a pursuit I will always be
on, as will any photographer.
Skip ahead a few years and I find yet another reason to change my camera. this time to a Canon 500D and to go with it, a Sigma 170-500mm lens. I used this combination for a long, long time until very recently, 2012, when I decided to make one last leap. I bought a Canon 60D and a Canon 100-400 L Series Lens. That lens is absolutely brilliant and when I look back at the pictures I got on the Sigma I see how good the 100-400 really is. I still use it and will do for a long time to come (unless the draw of it's upgraded version, out this year, tempts me too much).
Last but not least, I fell I have to mention
Foto-Buzz.
One of the best professional wildlife photographers the UK has is a chap
called Andy Rouse. He's won many awards and his work is continually
fantastic. But no only is he passionate about the wildlife he
photographs, and their conservation, he also loves to teach others. And he
now does this, with help from some of his friends in the trade, via a site
called Foto-Buzz.
It's a great community of like minded, friendly people who want to learn new
things about photography and some that are more advanced and also like to
share helpful tips and advice with other members. Some are already at
the top of their game and also join in to help us.
Andy and his team produce articles on various aspects of photography in
their FotoSkool section, organise meet-ups for members, and offer a great
blogging system for us to share our won work with the community and the
outside world.
They have three lounges; general chat, tech chat and a critique section for
us to get peoples opinions of our photos and how they can be improved. The
HQ Guys Andy and as yet unmentioned here, his colleague and friend (and also
a fantastic photographer) Andrew James also share their thoughts with you
too. I have already learnt a lot about my photography and more
importantly, my compositional skills, by using this website. It costs to
join, but it's worth every penny and they have a few different sign-up
options depending on your budget.
I cant recommend the site enough! Here's their welcome screen, which is better than me at explaining what they offer. Click on it to navigate to their site.
So that's enough about me and my naughty plug for Foto-Buzz. I hope you like my images and I hope over time you notice a difference in my pictures as I learn to improve my skill.