Post your best bird shots!

[Joel Eade]

JJphoto.


I like to use DPP to process multiple images in the same way (ie batch processing) such as family snapshots but with my bird images I find ACR to be better.


Also, photoshop really opens up an entire world of tools you can use to enhance your images. You aredefinitely going in the right direction.


There are tons of tutorials out there and loads of advice on forums like this one so you can get up to speed quickly


Joel





[img]/cfs-file.ashx/__key/CommunityServer.Components.UserFiles/00.00.00.32.28/Raw00025.jpg[/img]

[Pieter]

Joel,


that's definitely one of your best. I really like the extreme smooth background and the angle of the head of the bird. Can you perhaps post the original(non processed) file, so that we can see the difference?


Have you ever tried to capture birds in flight?


Thanks very much for the nice pictures and the info.

[Joel Eade]

Thanks Pieter,


I live in central Kentucky in a heavily wooded area so not much opportunity for flight shots, I have taken some gulls in flight at a local lake but we do not have a large population of Herrons or other large species that lend themselves to flight shots. I have not spent much time attempting flight shots but would love to travel someday to such a location.


Here is the image above converted with ACR without any adjustments......[img]/cfs-file.ashx/__key/CommunityServer.Components.UserFiles/00.00.00.32.28/Raw000251.jpg[/img]

[Joel Eade]

Here is one of my few BIF shots.....I don't like the background much but I did manage to get the bird in focus with a decent head angle.


This was with 1D MKIII + 300mm 2.8L + 1.4TC


[img]/cfs-file.ashx/__key/CommunityServer.Components.UserFiles/00.00.00.32.28/343V94712.jpg[/img]

[JJphoto]

Joel, I can see the difference between before and after, especially on the bird's eye, I'm ordering my photoshop rightnow[]


that GBH in flight is really a nice one!, I like that there are so much detail of the wing even with such a dark background.


I feel lucky I live in the area with many opportunity of BIF.


thanks again Joel

[Sinh Nhut Nguyen]

Hi Joe, nice bird, good pose, perch and head angle, clean background, however the upper edge of the lower part of the branch looks unatural to me.


Mandarin Duck Potrait


40D + 500 f/4L IS, handhold, manual exposure, wild bird.


Thanks for looking, all comments, critiques and questions welcome


Larger version http://photo.net/photodb/photo?photo_id=10482716&size=lg

[jake66]

As always Nate thatis quite simply stunning.

[YellowJacket]

<span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif'; color: black; font-size: 9pt;"]I'm sorry Nate... I cannot offer any criticism. Terrific detail &amp; color... I only hope that the final resolution isn't compromised by the tight crop.<o></o>


<span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif'; color: black; font-size: 9pt;"]I suspect this is from a few months ago as it wasn't taken with your 7D + 500F4. I am holding out as long as I can before picking up the 400 5.6... I truly want something created in this millennium, a 90's lens just feels... old to me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"] I&rsquo;m hopeful for an upgrade to that lens or the 100-400.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"] Do you ever use the 400F5.6 now that you have the 500F4?<o></o>

[powers_brent]

Canon Rebel XS with Canon EF 300mm f/4L IS USM and Canon EF 1.4x II Extender
@ 420mm, 1/400, f/5.6, ISO 100
Shot in Av Mode with an Exposure Bias of -1 EV


California Quail (state bird) at Pinnacles National Monument between the Hwy-101 and Hwy-25 outside Soledad in Central California.


Earlier the same morning a family of quail were trying to cross my campsite as I was tearing it down. The mother or father would scout ahead and determine it safe for the other parent to bring the kids through, but most times I would inadvertently scare the quail so it would go running back across the road into the bushes to join the rest of the waiting family. I was trying to pack up as fast as I could so that I could get my camera out and lie in wait for them, but as I was putting my last thing away and grabbing my camera the entire family of about seven or eight ran across and up the hill next to camp. Another shot missed! Darn. Also, they make the loudest flap of their wings when they fly. I scared one the day before and it flew by so fast another camper that she nearly crapped her pants.

[StapledPhoto]

5DII, 100-400L @ 400mm, f/8, 1/400, ISO 100.


I'm a little uncertain about posting into this thread, but here goes. This was shot from the back of a small boat as the eagle flew past us yesterday. I cropped quite a bit out of the original capture. All comments and critiques are very welcomed.


Yesterday was my first day out trying BIF after having just switched from a 40D to my new 5DII last week. I've already found with the full frame body that I'm needing to let go of my personal rule against cropping my photos, plus there's a lot more detail there to play with.


-Yoni