everyone who comes back from the galapagos always comments on how unafraid the animals are of humans. it's true, and that's great for photographers. however there's a difference between being unafraid and being domesticated. the animals are still wild, they don't want food or attention from the humans (in general anyway), they just don't see us as the threat which they historically should. as a result this photo was still somewhat of a challenge. i planted my camera and tripod in the iguanas' path only to see the animal course-correct and divert around me. in the end my solution was similar to the way that i shot mr tortuga. i waited for the iguana to stop, which usually happened when i was too close to it. i set up my camera and tripod and then retreated to a safe distance with my remote control, ready to snap when it started moving again. this process makes it impossible to know how the photos will look until after the animal has moved on, but still made for some satisfying wide angle close ups.

here's the original

everyone who comes back from the galapagos always comments on how unafraid the animals are of humans. it's true, and that's great for photographers. however there's a difference between being unafraid and being domesticated. the animals are still wild, they don't want food or attention from the humans (in general anyway), they just don't see us as the threat which they historically should. as a result this photo was still somewhat of a challenge. i planted my camera and tripod in the iguanas' path only to see the animal course-correct and divert around me. in the end my solution was similar to the way that i shot mr tortuga. i waited for the iguana to stop, which usually happened when i was too close to it. i set up my camera and tripod and then retreated to a safe distance with my remote control, ready to snap when it started moving again. this process makes it impossible to know how the photos will look until after the animal has moved on, but still made for some satisfying wide angle close ups.

here's the original