Does flash photography harm animal...?

[Dheerendra Singh]

Please see this article
http://www.naturettl.com/does-flash-...-harm-animals/

Your kind suggestions much appreciated.

[Paramvir Singh]

Well, to begin with, I think it starts with two things:

1) why would we (the vast majority of hobby wildlife photographers) use flash? To get better photographs that can get more social media likes and shares? (There is barely any money to be made from wildlife photos for a vast majority of shutter happy guys anyway).

2) I don't know about the physical effects, but psychologically you expose the animals to urban behaviour and living, perhaps in some way, curtailing their very natural behaviours. The whole unwritten rule of wildlife photography, observation etc is to be unobtrusive. To blend in. To do your work, observation, etc un-noticed. It's like not feeding wild animals. Your flash can also scare off a bird (maybe ruining the other person's photo), can momentarily distract an animal who is being predates, may make a predator lose a prey etc.

In fact flash Photograohy is generLly considered socially annoying. If you sit in a cafe/airport/mall/ public place with a volley of flash selfies, it's distracting and annoying, isn't it? It's generally only acceptable where the subject wants to be photographed and it's the subject's moment.

I also find fully front lit photography unaesthetic.

[Dheerendra Singh]

Thanks for your valuable comments...paramvir.

[Paramvir Singh]

This is a good starting point. Guide to ethical wildlife photography.

http://www.conservationindia.org/resources/ethics