The Best Wildlife Photography Books for Learning

Our top book selections for mastering the art of wildlife photography

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Wildlife photography is a tough genre to master, requiring not only excellent general photography skills and a keen sense of composition, but also the ability to adjust to rapidly changing situations. While taking good photos of captive animals in a zoo requires skill, actually finding wild animals in their own habitat and then knowing how to work within that habitat to capture compelling photographs is an art form that takes time to master.

While other forms of photography have become more democratized over the years, with talented new photographers in lifestyle and travel genres popping up on Instagram and developing a huge following seemingly overnight, wildlife photography is still a genre that requires significant effort, specialized equipment, and a deep knowledge of nature, animal behavior, and the environment. Unless you plan on photographing close-up wildlife like insects, you’re going to most likely need to invest in some longer lenses in order to fill your viewfinder with distant animals.

Wildlife photography also has an ethical component, a subject every good book about the subject should go into. As photographers, we’ve got the important responsibility of not only sharing inspiring photos with the world, but also acting as stewards of the environment, promoting habitat and species conservation through our wildlife photos. Wildlife photographers should always familiarize themselves with the ethical issues surrounding their work to ensure they can make a difference.

Online guides like our wildlife photography composition tips are great starting points for photographers who want to learn the basics of wildlife photography, but there’s nothing quite like a book when it comes to learning. These books have been written by some of the top wildlife photographers in the world, and we think they’re among the best books about wildlife photography, going into depth about all of the essentials, from exposure and composition to more advanced skills like wildlife behavior and tracking. The links below will take you to the Amazon page for each wildlife photography book: