You have an impressive diversity of species and some really good results, especially with the technique of stalking them rather than luring them close.
Keep 'em coming!!
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You have an impressive diversity of species and some really good results, especially with the technique of stalking them rather than luring them close.
Keep 'em coming!!
Song bird photos that aren't staged in some manner are very difficult. I have a stick located close to a bird feeder. I wait for the birds to hit the stick and then take the photo.
https://live.staticflickr.com/4859/3...85f0c121_b.jpg2018_11_10_1133_LR_upd_8x10 by dthrog00, on Flickr
Using gear that is not extremely expensive this is the only way to go IMHO. The 80D is a modest camera and 100-400 II is fairly spendy, I find it makes a good combo. A 1DX with $10,000 lens it is not, but it is good enough for my needs.
More basic stuff can work fine too. This is with a 60D and 70-200 f/4 L USM (non-IS) with a gen II 1.4X extender.
https://live.staticflickr.com/8251/8...e2745a67_b.jpg2013_03_05_3368_upd by dthrog00, on Flickr
Dave
I think the lens is more important than the camera body for a bird photography "set up". The version II 100-400mm Canon is an extremely sharp lens and if your perches are set within range to get your subject relatively large in the frame you can achieve excellent results with most cameras. The full frame sensors of course will give better high ISO performance whereas the 1.6 "crop sensors" may provide more pixels on the subject. My son uses a Canon 6D Version I and has really nice results.Quote:
Originally Posted by Dave Throgmartin
Great insights, thank you both.
Dave, you must have been quite close in your last shot (I assume at 280mm). Are you sitting in a blind or in the open? Anyone using a camo sleeve? Does it help? I'm finding that just raising the camera to take the shot has been enough to scare several away.
I'm now using the Canon 400 5.6 prime and a 6D. Debated between this and the 2x III for my 70-200. Also briefly considered the 100-400 I. I was a bit worried about lack of IS before the purchase, but to Joel's point I can push the ISO on the 6D pretty far before I run into trouble. The lens itself is light and easy to handhold. I've had to keep both eyes open a few times to find my subject, but viewfinder jitter really hasn't been bad.So far liking the lens a lot.
I'm shooting through my sliding door window in these shots. I try to keep it reasonably clean to avoid affecting the image. I'm typically ~ 15 ft away.Quote:
Originally Posted by PatrickH
Dave
I do not like to shoot through a pane of glass at all. It really degrades image quality in my experience and tends to often confuse the AF system (again in my experience)
I have used a "pop up" blind (these are marketed for deer hunting) but more often I sit inside and open the back door just enough to get a clear shot.
I have found that the birds are not too sensitive to sound but very sensitive to motion so I keep my rig on a tripod and keep the lights out so I am hiding in the dark to some extent. Camo lens covers make no difference but I like the lens coat neoprene covers just to protect the lens.
Some birds will still spook even if I raise my hands quickly to take a shot or move the lens too quickly.....I assume they can see light reflecting from the front lens element.
I favor shutter speed over ISO and have found it difficult to get really sharp images below 1/320 sec even with a tripod as small birds are constantly moving a bit even when perched. I have often used Tv mode to set the shutter speed and then set ISO to auto. If you get the exposure correct then noise can usually be handled in post even with very high ISO settings. (especially with "full frame" cameras)
Yes, been using Tv with auto ISO. May also try M with auto ISO to see if stopping down the aperture slightly makes any difference. Appreciate the tips guys, thank you.
I am not sure about others, but my issue with birds and auto anything is that the bird is usually a small part of the scene that the metering system exposes for the background and not the bird. Of course, if they have similar exposure/light, that is fine.
But most often if I am in auto anything I have it set to underexpose by 1-1.5 stops.
More often, I am in full manual and I set my exposure on something similar to what I expect for the birds. I get burned once in awhile if lighting changes. But more often than not that is working for me.
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The auto iso trick works a bit better using spot metering with the spot linked to the AF spot ..... that meters for the bird and ignores the background. I've noticed with evaluative metering that often exposure compensation is needed to get the bird right because, as you said, the entire scene is being metered. With practice it isn't too difficult to dial the exposure up and down as needed .... with this technique I use Manual mode mostly. Once you acquire a good understanding of metering and exposure you can make it work in many ways.
Have you had much luck with the 5DIV and spot metering? Unless I am mistaken, it is for the center AF point only (linked to AF point is a 1D feature). This just shows how long I have been at this but I did try spot metering "a couple of years ago" and opted for my current system. But, a "couple of years ago" could have easily be 4-5 years ago on my 5DIII. So, I'll give it another try on my 5DIV (its not like I am going on a trip soon or something) and see if it has improved, or, if I have improved ;).Quote:
Originally Posted by Joel Eade
Thanks.
been getting a lot of flower shots, so i'm gonna make a thread to show them off at some point but for now here's a few close up shots.
https://i.imgur.com/oKSWYsQ.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/lLOvzpP.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/zVwaE8i.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/Cor25Kg.jpg
Some beauties
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Keep the lovely shots coming, Zach!
thanks Brant & Danny :D
I was treated to quite a light-show at Badlands National Park on Saturday. Some severe thunderstorms passed through in the afternoon and evening, with high winds, torrential rain, hail, and a funnel cloud. About 30 min before sunset, I could tell the storm was about passed, and it was clearing to the west. With nothing else to do, I grabbed my camera and figured I'd sit in the car in case the sun broke through the clouds. It did not disappoint. As the sun was setting, it shone right on the retreating storm and produced a giant rainbow. At the same time, lightning was still striking east side of the park (where I had just come from). It was super windy (and still lightly raining), but I did my best to block the camera as I was doing long exposures to catch the lightning. I've never had such an opportunity before, with a spectacular sunset, rainbows, and lightning, all while being in a fantastic location. The light was rapidly changing, so it was hard to set up compositions where the lightning and rainbows weren't at the edge of the frame. I did my best; of course if I knew where the lightning was going to be, it would have been much easier!
https://photos.smugmug.com/Galleries...-Pano-2-XL.jpg
https://photos.smugmug.com/Galleries...04-Edit-XL.jpg
https://photos.smugmug.com/Galleries...DS_0129-XL.jpg
Wow .... beautiful images. The second one is especially stunning. Nice work!
C4RBON: What a great set. Many wait a lifetime for this kind of setting. Really great stuff. Very glad that prep, opportunity, and skill all intersected. Thanks so much for sharing these wonderful images.
Mike
Fantastic set C4RBON !
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...a1db37b7_b.jpgSunset in the Alps by Pierre, on Flickr
Beautiful Pierre!
Thanks Zach ! Here's another one from yesterday...Quote:
Originally Posted by Zach
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...fc537c71_b.jpgCime de l'Est by Pierre, on Flickr
got this, the focus is too off but this was the best of the batch.
https://i.imgur.com/QLTsF2v.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/VuvFTKfl.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/0uASd5t.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/VWFLjtL.jpg
Zach, really like the dandelion
gorgeous set Pierre! the first one really catches the eye
+1 Beautiful shots Pierre
A few from a drive last weekend
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...83670086_b.jpg6S0A7363 by kayaker72, on Flickr
All with the 5DIV, 24-70 II
24 mm, 1/125, f/8, ISO 200
Attachment 2827
33 mm, 1/30, f/2.8, ISO 200
Attachment 2828
24 mm, 1/125, f/2.8, ISO 100
Attachment 2829
Thanks for viewing...Brant
Beautiful shots Brant!
I really need to step up my game on the flower photos.
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tried to make these look like older photos
https://i.imgur.com/kTSKiuKl.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/lSsOgbO.jpg
Thanks Zach. Nice set yourself!
This was fun. I didn't get them all in a single photo, but a whole family of Nuthaches were running around this tree. I like to think this is the result of the two I watched building a nest in a nearby tree.
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...476e832_6k.jpg6S0A7609 by kayaker72, on Flickr
A friend and I bushwhacked back into a small creek after he found a reference to a "forgotten" waterfall.....
Worth it.
Shell Cascade
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...fb4137a8_h.jpg6S0A8385 by kayaker72, on Flickr
Along the creek (5DIV, 24-70 II @ 38 mm, 25 sec, f/10, ISO 250
Attachment 2833
Ooh very nice Brant, such a serene setting.
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One from yesterday...
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...e8f73c70_b.jpgAfter the rain by Pierre, on Flickr
Great shot Pierre!
I am very impressed with the images of Comet Neowise that several of you have been getting. I have been thwarted the times I have run out to try to get an image. Even on supposed "clear" nights, there has been enough low clouds that I have not yet seen it.
Instead, I took the M6II and 500 mm plus TCs and aimed it at Jupiter and Saturn to see what I could capture and got the second two. The first was actually from earlier in the year with less humidity in the sky so I actually got some bands on Jupiter.
+1.4x TC, 700 mm, 1/160th, f/5.6, ISO 100
Attachment 2860
This was actually my first attempt the other night, 2x TC, 1000 mm, 0.5 sec, f/8, ISO 12,800. I tried to dial it in from there, but actually liked this over exposure.
Attachment 2861
2x tc, 1000 mm, 1/50, f/8, ISO 1600
Attachment 2862
Not winning any awards, but I am still impressed what a birding set up was able to accomplish.
Thanks for viewing--Brant
Wow!!! Blown away that you can see the bands and rings without a telescope. These are cool.
I was able to capture Neowise, but nothing spectacular. When I finally spotted it (barely visible just after 10PM), I wasn't in a a position to include an interesting foreground.
I found focusing incredibly difficult. For astro images I normally zoom in to 10x and adjust focus until the stars are tack sharp, but because the sky around Neowise wasn't completely dark, and nothing was visible in the viewfinder I was basically guessing.
In hindsight I would have shot wider. I took this with my 70-200mm thinking that a compressed image would be better, but it still would have been impressive and easier to shoot with less magnification.
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...04eafc46_k.jpgNeowise by Patrick H, on Flickr
Thanks! Great shot of Neowise!Quote:
Originally Posted by PatrickH
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Messing around with my new EF M adapter. I have to say that I'm fairly impressed. Using the LCD is little tricky at the equivalent of 640mm, but not as bad as I was fearing. I am definitely enjoying the added "reach". Noise isn't too bad either. This one was shot at ISO 1600.
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...2cb6b8c2_k.jpgWood Duck Reflection by Patrick H, on Flickr
75 degrees and sunny on Wednesday. Snuck away for a quick kayak trip to Hopkinton Pond. The battery died on my M6 II, so I only have a couple of shots from the kayak....but we got off the water just in time for sunset.
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...6fed354c_h.jpg537A2438 by kayaker72, on Flickr
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...a13ef84b_h.jpg537A2440 by kayaker72, on Flickr
BTW...both taken with R5. Thanks for viewing...Brant
Really beautiful shots Brant
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Trying to catch up on processing shots from earlier this year. Spent some time with a couple caribou in late spring (during covid lockdown) just a short walk from my house.
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...71feffab_c.jpg4N9A3669 copy by Stephen, on Flickr
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...7412bca7_c.jpg4N9A3620 copy by Stephen, on Flickr
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...d30fffc3_c.jpg4N9A3608 copy by Stephen, on Flickr
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...c8ac9fca_c.jpg4N9A3407 copy by Stephen, on Flickr
Thanks for looking.
Stephen
Very cool. Great lighting.
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