Page 5 - Words of WiNZdom

Learning the art of the artificial

Page 5

For that “pure nature” effect
a good bait spot should look
as realistic as possible since

there may be no way of
keeping it out of the shot (even
after cropping). Besides which,
a more canny subject may
never approach it should things
appear too man-made, or the

food conveniently placed in
front of an uncovered camera.
So choose a place that will
compose your subject well, i.e.
with the best possible light and

setting, making sure your
background is clear and your foreground free of any unwanted
distractions.

If you find bait showing up in a shot that you'd like to keep then you'll need to learn
about "cloning", a digital post-processing technique of masking unwanted objects with
tiny copies of a picture’s background and surroundings.

Left: brown rat surrounded by bird seed.
Right: seeds cloned out for a cleaner, more "natural" effect.