A trip to the zoo

[zombiemann]

As I said in my thread the other day, I don't normally photograph animals. But I am trying to broaden my horizons. I know some of these are kind of "soft" but all I have (or can afford right now) are my 18-55 and 75-300 canon kit lenses. I'd love to get some better glass, but right now that just isn't in the budget. So.... softness aside, what do you guys think of these:

 

[Shipman]

I really dig the cheetah one

 

[zombiemann]

I really dig the cheetah one

That was by far the most difficult shot of the bunch. Even though we went fairly early (as soon as the zoo opened) a lot of the animals were already starting to try and hide from the heat of the day. The cheetah was a good distance away and well below the platform I was shooting from. I was zoomed as far in as I could get with my 300mm lens. Just for reference, I'm adding the uncropped version of that shot.

 

[supercool2]

I know as a beginner, that getting good shots at the zoo is no easy task! They look good to me, given that I understand how the lighting can be quite dim or really bright, and always changing depending on where you are at the zoo. Personally I would love to go to the zoo just to practice my skills but its an hour away for us.

 

[zombiemann]

I live about a block from the zoo entrance, but as zoos go.... it is lackluster at best. Although we are getting a new penguin exhibit sometime this year or next.

I figure each press of the shutter button is a learning experience. I am either learning how to achieve something, or a way to totally miss what I was going for. Admittedly, the "good" is a lot more fun than the "not so good". And doubled with the fact that shooting animals is fairly new to me... 7 decent shots out of 132 taken isn't bad.