Post your best bird shots!

[neuroanatomist]

Thanks, Jon and Rich. I'm just happy that Spring is finally springing around here...although we're expecting a few slushy inches on Friday. [8o|]

[ddt0725]

Wonderful photo, John! Exposure and composition are perfect!


I kept hearing a woodpecker when I was in my backyard this morning but never did zero in on where he was at!


Denise

[HDNitehawk]

I can't say I have ever seen one of these and actually known that is what it is.,,,until today





A Yellow Belly Sapsucker


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And a few other woodpeckers








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[Iguide]

Hi John:


You don

[JJphoto]

[View:http://community.the-digital-picture...neric/utility/

Rick, this is an interesting shot. I see two different kind of blur here, the motion blur (wing tips) and the out of focus blur. it needs very fast shutter speed to freeze the wing tips of a small bird. I'v been trying to get a good BIF shot of a small bird with the 500mm without any luck. small birds move too fast. your focus point seems on the tree, but the bird's eye looks still in focus, that's pretty good. guess you set up your f stop to around 7.0?( don't think it's because the nice Al Servo AF of your 1D IV,, especially the bird is flying towards you, but what do you think?) what's the shutter speed?

[HDNitehawk]

Rick, this is an interesting shot. I see two different kind of blur here, the motion blur (wing tips) and the out of focus blur. it needs very fast shutter speed to freeze the wing tips of a small bird. I'v been trying to get a good BIF shot of a small bird with the 500mm without any luck. small birds move too fast. your focus point seems on the tree, but the bird's eye looks still in focus, that's pretty good. guess you set up your f stop to around 7.0?( don't think it's because the nice Al Servo AF of your 1D IV,, especially the bird is flying towards you, but what do you think?) what's the shutter speed?

JJ This shot is the 5th shoot in a burst of 7. The other shot of the same bird was the 3rd shoot in the burst. I should post all 7 shoots to show how fast these guys move. In less than 1/10 of a second the bird is on the tree then its gone out of the frame. On the LCD it looked sharp, if it had been when I put it on the computer it would have been like hitting a jackpot on a slot machine.


Here were the settings: 1D IV in High Speed, AI Servo with the single point and assist points enabled. Flash enabled, and it only fired on the first shoot. 700mm, 1/1600, F 5.6, ISO 320 (Set to auto and <span style="font-size: small;"]limited to 200-800) off my gitzo monopod.


<span style="font-size: small;"]None of these shots were really sharp in my opinion. I was struggling with overcast lighting and it seemed like I just couldn't nail a great picture. But, these guys were coming in groups the last few days in the trees behind work. I am going to try again today.


<span style="font-size: small;"]I have been working at getting stop action shots of birds taking off and landing, but it is tough. (although I wasn't on this one, it was a static bird that took off during a burst) The AF mode in AI Servo is not fast enough to pick up the movement of the bird as it comes off. I am thinking now the only way to catch a shot like that is to focus on where the bird might be in manual focus, guess when its taking off and fire away. Then have some good luck, the camera AF just isn't fast enough to catch this action.


<span style="font-size: small;"]Rick

[JJphoto]

I am thinking now the only way to catch a shot like that is to focus on where the bird might be in manual focus, guess when its taking off and fire away. Then have some good luck, the camera AF just isn't fast enough to catch this action.

I have been thinking the same way, set the focus manually, hopping the bird fly in and not fly away from the focus too fast, use the fastest speed you can and fire a burst and see if you get a lucky one.


i guess a flash should help,but have no any idea especially with a burst. good luck, Rick!

[HDNitehawk]

i guess a flash should help,but have no any idea especially with a burst. good luck, Rick!

It only fires on the first shot of the burst.


Now if someone knows if there is a battery pack that can recharge fast enough to do multiple shots in the burst, I would like to know what it is.

[neuroanatomist]

Now if someone knows if there is a battery pack that can recharge fast enough to do multiple shots in the burst, I would like to know what it is.

My 430EX II fires through 5-6 shots of a 7D burst. That's partly because 8 fps is slower than 10 fps, but also because both flashes use 4 AA cells, but the 580 has a larger capicitor to fill than the 430, meaning more time to recycle. What batteries do you use? NiMH's like eneloops recycle the flash significantly faster than alkalines (2-3 times as fast).

[HDNitehawk]

My 430EX II fires through 5-6 shots of a 7D burst. That's partly because 8 fps is slower than 10 fps, but also because both flashes use 4 AA cells, but the 580 has a larger capicitor to fill than the 430, meaning more time to recycle. What batteries do you use? NiMH's like eneloops recycle the flash significantly faster than alkalines (2-3 times as fast).

I am using Energizer Recharable, so the eneloops will give mequicker fire power?


I did notice that the 430ex, I used it off camera remote at the bird feeder last week and I could get several shots with it. It seems to have a better recycle time than the 580ex II. But I can tell that the 430 doesn't throw as much light as the 580. This was important yesterday, it was overcast and I had the 580ex at +1 and +2 several times trying to get enough light to fill.


I did order the better beamer yesterday to see if that helps.