Safari Animal Reference Photos, Close Up

Close range, with long lenses

Large animals are hard to photograph well. You need a long lens, patience and good light. Most packs here were shot with telephoto lenses, such as a Canon 70-300mm L or a Sony 18-200mm, so the photographer could fill the frame with an eye, a hoof or a fold of skin from a safe distance. The result is full-resolution detail, usually 6000 × 4000 pixels, that a phone photo from behind a fence cannot give you.

Stripes, spots and wrinkles

Pattern and skin are where big-animal paintings succeed or fail. A zebra's stripes follow the shape of the muscles. A giraffe's patches change size from the neck to the legs. Rhino skin folds at the joints like heavy armour.

• Giraffes: 296 photos, from family groups to close-ups of skin, hooves, head, belly and spots.
• Zebras: 162 photos in overcast, daytime and sunset light, with short walking sequences and body close-ups.
• White Rhinos: 151 photos, photographed in Singapore.
• Tigers: 182 photos with close-ups and movement sequences. For a rare color form, the White Tiger pack adds 165 photos, also from Singapore.

Herds, walks and sequences

To draw an animal walking, you need consecutive frames, not one hero shot. The Antelopes pack has 224 photos at 7174 × 4788 of blackbuck, common eland and nyala at an open-range zoo in Australia. They leap, sprint, stand and graze, alone and in groups. Indian Elephants includes short walking sequences in different light. Pygmy Hippopotamus has 109 photos, including a few of the animal swimming underwater. Meerkats follows more than 10 animals in 172 photos, from many sides and in different light.

Primates

Monkeys are hard to draw because their hands and faces are so expressive. The largest pack here is Macaque Monkeys: 424 photos at 7360 × 4912, taken at the Ubud Monkey Forest in Bali. The monkeys run, climb, eat, rest and fight, and a few babies stay close to their mothers. Long-Tailed Monkeys has 158 photos of monkeys in a temple complex in Bali. For close-ups of hair and faces, see Hamadryas Baboon (175 photos) and Ring-Tailed Lemur (211 photos, with paws, faces and crawling sequences).

Frequently asked questions

Were these animals photographed on safari in Africa?

Not as far as the product pages say. "Safari animals" here means the species, many of them African. Each product page lists the location where the photographer provided it: for example, the white rhinos and white tiger were photographed in Singapore, the antelopes at an open-range zoo in Australia, and the macaques at a monkey forest in Bali. Some packs do not list a location.

Which pack shows the most variety of light?

Zebras was shot in overcast, daytime and sunset conditions. Indian Elephants was also shot in different lighting. This helps if you want to paint the same animal at a different time of day.

Are these good for animation and walk cycles?

Several packs include short movement sequences: walking elephants and zebras, running antelopes, climbing macaques. They are photo sequences, not video, so expect gaps between frames. For video of animals, see the Tasmanian Devil pack, which includes 2 clips.

Can I paint and sell a giraffe or tiger painting made from these photos?

Yes. Artwork you create using the photos as reference is yours to sell. Our page on wildlife art reference explains the license for painters in more detail.