In conversation: when sports met wildlife

While the subject matter might be very different – a football player speeding down the wing rather than a bird of prey swooping in to land – there are undoubted similarities between the worlds of sports and wildlife photography. Both require an element of planning, but also the ability to react instantly in unpredictable situations.

To look at how the genres overlap, Swiss Canon Ambassador and action sports photographer and videographer Martin Bissig recently took on the role of guest editor/host on Canon's podcast Shutter Stories, interviewing three fellow Canon Ambassadors from the worlds of sport and wildlife. He spoke to Maxime Aliaga, a French wildlife photographer who travels the world helping organisations working in nature conservation; Eddie Keogh, a British sports photographer with more than 30 years' experience shooting a range of action-packed events; and Lucia Griggi, a British-Italian wildlife and travel photographer who started out shooting surfers but now specialises in polar regions, including underwater and aerial photography.

All four pros shoot on Canon's EOS R System. Maxime and Martin have upgraded from a Canon EOS R to a Canon EOS R5, Lucia has recently returned from her first shoot with the Canon EOS R3 in Alaska, while Eddie also uses an EOS R3.

Here they discuss the skills required in both genres, what it takes to get that killer shot, and how the EOS R System is changing the way they take photos.

Maxime: I would say the 'wow' effect too – a picture that drives emotion. As a wildlife photographer, I want to raise awareness, so I really love it when the picture provokes interest or curiosity.

Martin : A lot of my action shoots aren't planned and I love to take things very spontaneously. Would you agree, Eddie?

Eddie: There's many variables to look at, even before the game starts, but the beauty of sports and wildlife is that you never know what's coming. I think that's one of the things we love about the job.

Martin: Can you plan shoots when working with animals, Maxime and Lucia?

Maxime: I try to plan a good location at the right time to have the best chance of meeting the animals, but when it comes to taking the picture, it's all about luck.

Lucia: In my early days, I used to thrive off being in the right place at the right time, but transitioning from action sports and surfing into wildlife expeditions and travel has proven that planning is such an integral part of getting the shot.

Martin: Lucia, do you see any overlaps or learnings that you've carried across from sports photography into wildlife photography?

Lucia: Having a deep understanding of wildlife is essential, and it's the same with surfing. Understanding and predicting the manoeuvres of the surfers, how they're going to position themselves in the wave, and how they're going to move when they do that. It's the same as understanding wildlife – every tiny little movement of a bear, studying it and knowing when it's going to jump for the salmon, when it's going to charge and how it's going to position itself.

Martin: So shooting a bear or a surfer, it's not much of a difference when it comes to planning?

Lucia: Not really, I'd just rather have a surfer coming towards me than a bear charging me! The shooting style is very similar in that you've got a subject fast approaching that can sometimes be erratic. It's a game-changer now we've got the focus tracking and the eye detection. If I could relive surfing again with the EOS R3, instead of my older setup, I would feel more lucky than I did back then.

Eddie: I've just done a tennis tournament with the EOS R3 and the face recognition is out of this world.

Martin: I'm interested to hear why everyone made the move to mirrorless. For me, it was mainly to do with the size and weight.

Lucia: I took the EOS R3 and the RF 400mm F2.8L IS USM [to Alaska], so that was quite daunting to test the camera on such a high-budget shoot. I had waders on, it was uncomfortable, the adrenaline was going, the next corner you're eye level with a grizzly – you can't travel heavy. Face tracking is an absolute game changer. I would have missed probably 40-50% of the shots if I hadn't had the EOS R3's face-tracking capabilities. And the ergonomics – I loved how light it was.

Maxime: When Canon released the EOS R, I knew that was the future. I like to see the picture in the viewfinder because I work a lot with under and overexposure when I'm in the forest. It's the same with the EOS R5 but even better – I feel like the camera is just a part of myself. I don't have to see where I have to push, what I have to do. I trust this camera so much.

Eddie: Seeing the exposure through the viewfinder. When you're working fast, and [the players] are running from shade into sunlight, it's just so cool to be able to change the exposure as you're following them. You can see exactly what you're getting. The frame rate really helps because when someone scores a goal, instead of getting two frames, I'm now getting at least three, sometimes four. The ISO is just crazy now, as well. I mean people never need to worry about ISO anymore.

Martin: As sport and wildlife photographers, I assume that your favourite lenses are very long. What do you love to use the most?

Lucia: My go-to lens would have been the Canon EF 300mm f/2.8L IS USM, but now I can safely say it's the Canon RF 400mm F2.8L IS USM. The focal length works for me.

Eddie: My favourites would probably be the Canon EF 400mm f/2.8L IS III USM and the EF 200mm f/2L IS USM, which just give you a beautiful image when you use the lenses wide open, and lovely background bokeh.

Maxime: I really love working with the Canon EF 600mm f/4L IS III USM and the Canon EF 400mm f/2.8L IS III USM because the quality is just crazy. But if I had to keep only one lens, it would be the Canon RF 100-500mm F4.5-7.1 L IS USM. It's a very sharp lens and very good quality. It gives me versatility.

Martin: It's not always easy to have a career in photography. What inspires you to get out of bed and grab your camera? [For me], I just love to go out and take pictures. It's a combination of my passions: sports, photography and travel. Being able to make a living following your passions, that's the biggest gift and that's what drives me every single day.

Eddie: I still love doing what I do. I still love pictures. There's nothing better than looking in the viewfinder and seeing a beautiful image.

Maxime: I know the animals' behaviour, how they live. I become a bit like a hunter – I track the animal, and think like an animal, so it's something a bit primal. Then it's all about sharing, raising awareness and showing the beauty of nature.

Lucia: If I didn't have photography, I wouldn't really have a purpose. For me, it's a way of giving back. As a wildlife photographer specialising in some of our most fragile ecosystems, it's sort of a witness statement. My way of educating others who may not have been as fortunate to have visited these really remote places.



As Martin, Lucia, Maxime and Eddie's conversation shows, no matter what genre of photography or filmmaking you work in, being able to dedicate yourself to capturing your passion in creative ways is a real gift.