zhounder opened this issue on Jan 26, 2005 ยท 14 posts
zhounder posted Wed, 26 January 2005 at 3:26 PM
zhounder posted Wed, 26 January 2005 at 3:27 PM
zhounder posted Wed, 26 January 2005 at 3:32 PM
Onslow posted Wed, 26 January 2005 at 3:42 PM
I am not an expert but I have been chatting to someone who is about nature photography recently. I was told that it is best to shoot on full aperture and focus on the eyes. That way the background gets thrown out of focus and all emphasis is on the subject. The exception of course is if you want to show some habitat. Richard.
And every one said, 'If we only live,
We too will go to sea in a Sieve,---
To the hills of the Chankly Bore!'
Far and few, far and few, Are the lands where the Jumblies
live;
Their heads are green, and their hands are blue, And they went to
sea in a Sieve.
Edward Lear
http://www.nonsenselit.org/Lear/ns/jumblies.html
Onslow posted Wed, 26 January 2005 at 4:45 PM
Just thought of another tip - If you want to photograph garden birds like image 2 - stick a spade or fork into the ground next to the bird table, preferably one that has a nice looking wooden handle. The birds will get used to using it as a perch. You can then set your camera to shoot and wait for one to arrive, you control the background by placement of the spade :)
And every one said, 'If we only live,
We too will go to sea in a Sieve,---
To the hills of the Chankly Bore!'
Far and few, far and few, Are the lands where the Jumblies
live;
Their heads are green, and their hands are blue, And they went to
sea in a Sieve.
Edward Lear
http://www.nonsenselit.org/Lear/ns/jumblies.html
DHolman posted Wed, 26 January 2005 at 7:40 PM
I guess my first question is, what do you think is a good image? What were you trying to do?
randyrives posted Wed, 26 January 2005 at 8:40 PM
Attached Link: http://www.rrives.com/RivesXmas04/slides/CRW_1558.html
I too am working on nature shots, but have had little opportunity. The images look slightly soft, could come from camera shake. Are you using a tripod? 1/180 of a sec. is borderline shutter speed for hand holding the lens on your 1st image. Try bumping the ISO up to 800. The general rule is 1/focal length. So for a 200mm you need to use 1/200th shutter speed, and if you shot digital don't forget to factor in fv crop. So on my DRebel that would be closer to 1/350. I have yet captured a bird shot that I really like. I really like the 3rd shot, love the color and lighting. I think for bird shots, especially the small birds as in your example you need a longer lens. I use 75-300 and find that I need more. The link is the best bird shot I have been able to take, after many attempts.
doca posted Wed, 26 January 2005 at 9:16 PM
Your problem may be your lens and extender combo. I shoot a D70 with a 100-400mm Tokina and get pretty good results. You do have to be very careful about shutter speed though, any vibration at that distance and you get blurry shots.
3DGuy posted Thu, 27 January 2005 at 12:19 PM
What is your problem with the shots? They look decent enough to me.
What is a friend? A single soul dwelling in two bodies. -
Aristotle
-=
Glass Eye Photography =- -= My Rendo Gallery =-
logiloglu posted Fri, 28 January 2005 at 12:38 PM
the shots are fine for me. i am not a specialist in animal photography too. now you can do some postwork. in photoshop or in the dark room. where ever you want to do this. try the burn and dodge technic in some parts. maybe you can work with masks.you can make some changes on the tones and contrasts. regards gerhard
cynlee posted Fri, 28 January 2005 at 1:02 PM
just getting them this close with my minimal zoom & having them hold still is an achievement in itself :]
bsteph2069 posted Fri, 28 January 2005 at 4:13 PM
I too think the third shot is a keeper. I would say it's perfect and I would be happy to see it in any publication. Even more so if I was the lady singing. The second bird shot seems alright also expecially if you are going to do any post work with PS or psp or whatever, which is typical. The first bird is alright for me the most distracting thing is the background. In fact the bird in the first picture is better than the bird in the second. Bsteph
deemarie posted Sat, 29 January 2005 at 5:27 AM
Lets try to get danob in here for advice - he has years of expertise in photographing wildlife - especially birds :)
danob posted Sat, 29 January 2005 at 1:26 PM
Well these are very good I have written an extensive article in the RIM magazine and would be more than happy to give any specific advice.. Quick tips include baiting with tid bits if you dont have a big zoom at least 400mm or better with a 1.4 or X2 TC they will soon get close enough to fill the frame Lighting is another factor and flash can leave the image looking very flat esp if there is snow when spot metering may be needed.. Tripods are awkward with quick creatures and rarely work a monopod maybe worthwhile IM me if you want any more detailed advice
Danny O'Byrne http://www.digitalartzone.co.uk/
"All the technique in the world doesn't compensate for the inability to notice" Eliott Erwitt