Canadian Birder

nikonpup

nikonpup

Senior Member
patience redtail. Birds are a very hard subject to shoot. Your camera d3200 and lens 70-300 are very adequate for the job. Do not rush off buying other equipment thinking that is your solution. get close to your subject, setup a feeder close to a window, go to a park or someplace birds are used to people. Do you shoot raw or jpeg? What software do you use for post processing? No giant steps to learning good photography.
 
R

Redtail55

Senior Member
I'm seeing that it's capable to some extent as I'm getting some decent pictures with static birds ; ducks, feeder birds, etc but BIF are hard to capture with the 11 point focus system of the camera.There are good reasons why I see so many guys using the higher end models with the 39 point system .I shoot in Jpeg and I have Apple Aperture on my Mac. Here's a few pics I took yesterday here in London,Ont.
DSC_3594.jpgDSC_3600.jpgDSC_3582.jpgDSC_3591.jpg
 
Scott Murray

Scott Murray

Senior Member
Redtail55 said:
I'm seeing that it's capable to some extent as I'm getting some decent pictures with static birds ; ducks, feeder birds, etc but BIF are hard to capture with the 11 point focus system of the camera.There are good reasons why I see so many guys using the higher end models with the 39 point system .I shoot in Jpeg and I have Apple Aperture on my Mac. Here's a few pics I took yesterday here in London,Ont.
View attachment 77620View attachment 77621View attachment 77622View attachment 77623
Click to expand...
I use single point focus and normally centre at that when doing BIF.

Looking at these photos it looks as though your shutter speed is way too slow. I can not read the EXIF but that is my guess.

Here are bird shots that I took with an old D80 thats right not the D800E that I now have.

http://smg.photobucket.com/user/muzza22au/library/Mandurah Estuary 6th March 07?sort=3&page=1







 
Last edited:
R

Redtail55

Senior Member
Hey Scott ,thanks for the reply ,my shutter speed on the Eagle was 1/4000 and the Rough Legged Hawk was 1/2500 , so I think that should be fast enough , and the Ducks were 1/1000.Could there be anything else that I'm missing ,my 70-300 lens has VR so maybe I should shut it off at those shutter speeds ?
 
Scott Murray

Scott Murray

Senior Member
Redtail55 said:
Hey Scott ,thanks for the reply ,my shutter speed on the Eagle was 1/4000 and the Rough Legged Hawk was 1/2500 , so I think that should be fast enough , and the Ducks were 1/1000.Could there be anything else that I'm missing ,my 70-300 lens has VR so maybe I should shut it off at those shutter speeds ?
Click to expand...
VR is not needed at those speeds, to me it looks like an issue with accurate focus, try spot focus using the centre point. If its a BIF put it on C if its static in pond etc put it on S.
 
R

Redtail55

Senior Member
Thanks Scott , I'll try those settings on my next outing and will post the pictures .The website 'ByThom" suggests exactly what you are ,that VR is not needed at high shutter speeds. Interesting note though is that the camera store employee of where I bought the lense at , suggested to leave it on all the time .
 
R

Redtail55

Senior Member
By the way just looked at your website Scott , awesome photos mate ! Stunning , love the wedding photo with the happy couple and the Bon Scott statue !
 
Scott Murray

Scott Murray

Senior Member
Redtail55 said:
Thanks Scott , I'll try those settings on my next outing and will post the pictures .The website 'ByThom" suggests exactly what you are ,that VR is not needed at high shutter speeds. Interesting note though is that the camera store employee of where I bought the lense at , suggested to leave it on all the time .
Click to expand...
Ask that employee how much photography he does ;) I have VR lenses and honestly hardly ever use VR. Maybe his photos are better than mine, but I some how doubt it :cool:
 
Scott Murray

Scott Murray

Senior Member
Redtail55 said:
By the way just looked at your website Scott , awesome photos mate ! Stunning , love the wedding photo with the happy couple and the Bon Scott statue !
Click to expand...
Thanks mate, that was a random shot suggested from a fellow Australian on Facebook of all places so we did it lol. The bride and groom are friends of mine so it was easy :) am now uploading a whole heap of gorilla photos and then it will be a heap of Africa Photos.
 
K

Kevin H

Senior Member
Redtail55 I'm going to pm you next time I'm down your way I have family there we'll have to go for a shoot I have a D5100 and looking for a D7100 if I have both at the time you can try both
 
R

Redtail55

Senior Member
I hardly doubt that the camera store employee has the same talent as you do , otherwise they wouldn't be a camera store employee !!!:)
 
W

weebee

Senior Member
Sambr said:
I have seen one of my Barred owl in a photo contest a CDN magazine was hosting litigation in progress with that one. Plus I have also seen one on Face Book and I am suing that asshole too.
Click to expand...

I understand your anger. But I hate large watermarks! It ruins the photo. But, like I said, I understand your reason.
 
Scott Murray

Scott Murray

Senior Member
Sambr said:
I have seen one of my Barred owl in a photo contest a CDN magazine was hosting litigation in progress with that one. Plus I have also seen one on Face Book and I am suing that asshole too.
Click to expand...
That is fair enough but you are right in that if we do not watermark them then they are not safe.
 
S

Silven

Senior Member
Redtail55 said:
I hardly doubt that the camera store employee has the same talent as you do , otherwise they wouldn't be a camera store employee !!!:)
Click to expand...

While I'm late to this conversation, and I KNOW Scott is a talented photographer, don't sell the employee short because he works at a camera store. At my local over priced store, all of the employees are full time photographers in one venue or an other that just have sooo much passion for photography (and employee discounts I'm sure!!) that they work part time to spread their passion around. I've seen their work and while not ground breaking it is technically sound and professional. They know their stuff even if all of them shoot Canon.:disgust:

As for your photography, your focal points seem just a hair off. That's why I think your pictures aren't as sharp as they could be. In my experience a higher end camera will not necessarily make you a better photographer. It will however magnify and tiny little shooting mistakes you may be making. A lot of people when making the switch are disappointed with their new cameras if they haven't first mastered their old ones. Just my 2 bits.
 
R

Redtail55

Senior Member
Understandable for sure Silven, i know that my skills aren't quite what seasoned pros are but it's pretty frustrating for me to try camera settings and tips from talented photographers and still end up with blurry pictures. The camera store employee is a nice person and all but they're telling me the opposite of what I'm being told (VR on or off )or read from these forums or online tutorials.So who's right ? dunno , but I'm not so excited to get out there and take pictures if I'm not too happy with the results. In the end all I want to do is take sharp in focus pictures , if it's me then I'll work on it harder to improve but if a D7000 allows me to get sharper pictures then a D3200 because of it being quicker or having 39 focus points then I'll pick up a used D7000 and give it a go and see how they turn out , what harm could it do ? Sorry if this sounds like sour grapes but i just want to take in focus pictures ....period. BTW thanks for the tips on the focusing , i'm trying to get better , I've been out every day this past week except one taking pictures and practicing my technique. BIF aren't easy that's for sure .
DSC_3725.jpgDSC_3726.jpgDSC_3724.jpg
 

Attachments

  • DSC_3727.jpg
    DSC_3727.jpg
    49.9 KB · Views: 52
S

Sambr

Senior Member
Redtail55 said:
Understandable for sure Silven, i know that my skills aren't quite what seasoned pros are but it's pretty frustrating for me to try camera settings and tips from talented photographers and still end up with blurry pictures. The camera store employee is a nice person and all but they're telling me the opposite of what I'm being told (VR on or off )or read from these forums or online tutorials.So who's right ? dunno , but I'm not so excited to get out there and take pictures if I'm not too happy with the results. In the end all I want to do is take sharp in focus pictures , if it's me then I'll work on it harder to improve but if a D7000 allows me to get sharper pictures then a D3200 because of it being quicker or having 39 focus points then I'll pick up a used D7000 and give it a go and see how they turn out , what harm could it do ? Sorry if this sounds like sour grapes but i just want to take in focus pictures ....period. BTW thanks for the tips on the focusing , i'm trying to get better , I've been out every day this past week except one taking pictures and practicing my technique. BIF aren't easy that's for sure .
View attachment 78037View attachment 78038View attachment 78039
Click to expand...
Your doing just fine. Now that you have the recipe - Practice, practice and practice - experiment with different settings. BIF photos take a while to master I am still learning & I shoot a D4 & D800. Be patient and did I say practice.
 
Top