Bird Photography

[Chase Creek 0]

I think you SHOULD quit your day job.

[tcr 0]

That last pic. is Totally Pro. :headbang:

You are the man :headbang:

:baby: Tcr

[Graham 0]

Thanks my friends, but I'm no where near fully competent and instinctive with my camera. I have spent a lot of time experimenting with easy subjects, such as white ducks sitting on the ground. Dialing in different exposures on thse easy subjects is starting to help me with the faster shots. As soon as I have time I'll post some shots showing how a pair of white ducks look, first shot using the cameras suggested meter exposure, then bumping the EV up by thirds, as well as down by thirds, to 2 full stops in both directions. When I shoot a white bird in flight with blue skies I've learned to bump down the EV by 1/3, so the highlights are not blown out. Its real hard keeping the color white without either blowing it our or having an off white color. But, given a choice, I go for off white.

 

[Guest]

Graham, do you manually bracket your photos or are you using the bracketing options in the camera? I have been using the custom bracketing options and I love it! The only trick is to make sure you take 3 exposures for each shot or you will be on the wrong step for the next shot which throws everything out of whack. :wallbash:

 

Well done on the bird pics, looks like you have found a niche in birds and macro stuff. Seems that you enjoy it and when you enjoy shooting certain subjects it reflects in your work. Good stuff.

[Peterjay 0]

Doggone it Graham, now you've got me interested in wildlife photography again - and after looking at the prices on Canon 500mm lenses, I may be forced to consider a career in armed robbery, or at the very least, television evangelism. Good thing I have an understanding wife. (LOL)

[Graham 0]

Hey Smalliehunter,

No I haven't used programmed bracketing yet, the birds move too fast. I have manually bracketed on still birds to get a feel for how I want my meter to read when shooting. I can set my camera to do a 3, 5, or 9 sequence bracket, by .3, .7 or a full stop, over and under. I think the first time I try programmed bracketing will be next time I use my wide angle lens on a tripod for a scenery shot. One thing I really like about shooting birds is not having a tripod with me, just point, pan, quickly adjust the meter, if necessary, depending on the bird color, and background, and shoot. I've learned that it takes constant concentration, thinking and quick finger movements. I have been using the Continuous Servo Mode at 4 frames per second, and if I were to set it to Bracket, the camera will stop once the bracket is done, and I’d have to lift my finger off the shutter button to reset. I prefer to fire away for as long as my memory buffer allows for, and shooting jpeg without RAW allows me to take more shots per bird flight without hesitation.

 

Hey Peterjay, I dream of someday owning a 500mm f/4. I might pick up the 300 f/4 for a Christmas present, costs much less than the 5 and 600's. I'd also love to have the 200-400 but that’s $5k, which is expensive, but still half the cost of a 600 f/4. I've been using a 70-200 and getting close to the birds. I use leg power and stealth instead of powerful glass, but I'm lucky to have so many birds around to practice on.

 

[Graham 0]

Another thing I've been doing to challenge myself, and to and help understand my camera and exposures, when shooting flying birds, is, using Aperture mode instead of Shutter speed mode with auto ISO. I'm constantly having to adjust my ISO manually, which is teaching me to always stay aware of the setting and implications. Most of the problems I've had in the past were due to my forgetting to adjust the ISO level. I adjust the ISO to keep my shutter speed above 500. Too bad there isn't a third dial for ISO, like the A and S, instead I have to press a button to activate, and use the rear shutter speed dial to adjust ISO.

[Peterjay 0]

Boy, you're not kidding about the expense - some of the lenses I've been looking at cost more than the most expensive DSLRs you can buy - but my wife has been making noises about wanting to move to Montana, so maybe there's a trade-off there somewhere - guess I'd need a 500mm if I want to go stomping around grizz country LOL.

[Graham 0]

I guess this counts as bird photography? The birds of paradise are now in bloom in my backyard and while at work this morning I thought about ways to shoot them, took a couple quick pics at lunch today, pasted one below. This evening, with better light, I hope to try and find ways to improve the composition and lighting.

 

Love Birds....

 

[Peterjay 0]

Looks like a fine shot to me as it is. One experiment you could try, especially with botanical studies or wildlife pix, is to flip-flop the image to see if the composition is stronger the other way. Since most people are right-eyed, it sometimes pays to put the focal point on the right side. That particular shot doesn't need any help, but it's food for thought.

[Graham 0]

Hi Peterjay, thanks for the idea, its a great suggestion.

 

I never thought of flipping it horizontally. I did rotate it vertically because I used a reflector for the lighting, and it looked unnatural with a leaf lit from below. To flip it horizontally its quite easy in Photoshop, click on edit, transform, flip horizontal. Thanks again!

 

Here's a quick flip, but I know I can do better. I want the foreground and background leaf out of focus and will try a different lens. I used my 200mm macro, had to back up from the shot, and even at f/4, the leaves are too sharp.

 

[Peterjay 0]

LOL - can't decide which one I like better - it's a beauty either way - It'd look great on a living room wall.

[Graham 0]

Thanks Buddy. What lens would you use to for some bokeh action? I need to finish typing some work related stuff for the next hour, and by then the light should be better to keep trying to perfect the shot.

[Graham 0]

Ok, this'll be the last bird of paradise pic posted here, couldnt get the effect I wanted, and prefer shooting other subjects.

 

[Graham 0]

Lunch Time....