Andrew Cresswell
Senior Member
D5100
Nikkor Vr 55-300
300mm
F 8
1/500
ISO 200
Cropped
First Wildlife-Should it be my last?
- Thread starter Andrew Cresswell
- Start date
D5100
Nikkor Vr 55-300
300mm
F 8
1/500
ISO 200
Cropped
Why would it be your last? If you expect miracles on first trials, then your faith won't last long. 
Remember that those fantastic images you sometimes see on the net and you would like to catch are a one in a thousand.
I think your image is fine. The only thing I would have done is crop it differently so that the bird would not be dead centered. Don't get discouraged, practice makes perfect and there is no such thing as a perfect picture. If photography is a hobby for you, just enjoy the time you're out there practicing this hobby and keep hoping that you'll get the perfect picture one of these days.
Enjoy your Nikon!
Remember that those fantastic images you sometimes see on the net and you would like to catch are a one in a thousand.
I think your image is fine. The only thing I would have done is crop it differently so that the bird would not be dead centered. Don't get discouraged, practice makes perfect and there is no such thing as a perfect picture. If photography is a hobby for you, just enjoy the time you're out there practicing this hobby and keep hoping that you'll get the perfect picture one of these days.
Enjoy your Nikon!
Scott Murray
Senior Member
The thing with wildlife is "Patience" just like anything it doesn't just happen. Get out there and try try try most of the photos that are taken by professional wildlife photographers are one out of maybe hundreds or even thousands.
This is a pretty good effort for your first shot, I would suggest studying the birds and get to know them that way they also will become comfortable with you and you will get closer to them. But do not rush this as they have to trust in that you wont harm them.
This is a pretty good effort for your first shot, I would suggest studying the birds and get to know them that way they also will become comfortable with you and you will get closer to them. But do not rush this as they have to trust in that you wont harm them.
Pierro
Senior Member
There's little wrong with the shot - no need to give up after the first ever photo !
Its a bit soft, so maybe you used the VR and didnt give it time to ' settle ' before shooting. Aperture and shutter speed are fine for a sharp shot, so i'm just guessing that it was the VR.
VR should have been disabled if you were using a tripod. In fact, @ 1/500 you shouldnt really have needed the VR at all
Its a bit soft, so maybe you used the VR and didnt give it time to ' settle ' before shooting. Aperture and shutter speed are fine for a sharp shot, so i'm just guessing that it was the VR.
VR should have been disabled if you were using a tripod. In fact, @ 1/500 you shouldnt really have needed the VR at all
stamatisg2002
Senior Member
Nice birdshot! Is it edible?
For a first shot, it's pretty good. I agree with a couple of the earlier comments that cropping it so that the birds is not centered in the image. Since it is looking to the left, I would crop it so that there is more space on the left to give room to "look into".
It looks a little soft to me as well, was this hand-held or on a tripod? Pierro is correct with the VR, if on a tripod, turn the VR off, shutter 1/500 or higher, turn it off. I would have bumped the iso up to 400, which would have let you use a higher shutter speed, helping you to get a sharper image.
Colin
It looks a little soft to me as well, was this hand-held or on a tripod? Pierro is correct with the VR, if on a tripod, turn the VR off, shutter 1/500 or higher, turn it off. I would have bumped the iso up to 400, which would have let you use a higher shutter speed, helping you to get a sharper image.
Colin
BackdoorArts
Senior Member
With wildlife my rule is that if I find 1 photo in 10 usable then I had a good day. 50% of my shooting over the last 2 years has been birds and it's taken me most of that time before I finally got a photo of a cardinal that I was happy with - and they are in my yard every day!! It's the joy and the madness of shooting something you have no control over.
Nothing wrong with the photo at all. With zooms know that when you're at the extremes things are going to be a little softer than in the middle. As you get to know your equipment you'll get better results without thinking about it. I've even taken to going back to stuff I shot 18-24 months ago and reprocessing the RAW image as I've learned tons there as well, so shots that were OK are more shareable now as I've better learned how to fix mistakes, or just process the good ones. - one of the joys of Lightroom and RAW files.
Keep at it. As was said, shoot a lot - digital film is free.
Nothing wrong with the photo at all. With zooms know that when you're at the extremes things are going to be a little softer than in the middle. As you get to know your equipment you'll get better results without thinking about it. I've even taken to going back to stuff I shot 18-24 months ago and reprocessing the RAW image as I've learned tons there as well, so shots that were OK are more shareable now as I've better learned how to fix mistakes, or just process the good ones. - one of the joys of Lightroom and RAW files.
Keep at it. As was said, shoot a lot - digital film is free.
I am not sure what you are looking for, compliments?
a bit dark in editing, not a super dramatic shot, try to find shots with action or interesting interaction with its surrounding, keep the focus point on the eye, decide how much dof you want before hand because time is compressed when doing nature shots (window of opportunity can be in milliseconds of a great shot to miss shot).
I don't have the patience of the bird blind folks, who can wait a day to get the one keeper, but their results can be amazing.
a bit dark in editing, not a super dramatic shot, try to find shots with action or interesting interaction with its surrounding, keep the focus point on the eye, decide how much dof you want before hand because time is compressed when doing nature shots (window of opportunity can be in milliseconds of a great shot to miss shot).
I don't have the patience of the bird blind folks, who can wait a day to get the one keeper, but their results can be amazing.
ryanwphotography
Senior Member
Nice shot! I agree about the cropping to the left. Why give-up? I struggled when I first started shooting and I shoot pretty much everyday! I took a trip to the grand canyon without undertsanding a thing about manual controls other than aperture is how much is in focus and shutter speed controls the movements in your shot. ISO is to be kept at 100. Let me tell you my shots were teribble! I only had about 30 out of like 5,000 shots that I actually was happy with! I was very discouraged! I always shot in A mode and didn't undertand how it all worked together. Now I shoot in manual pretty much all the time. The only thing I really struggle with now is turn VR off when I'm on a tripod! lol
Keep shooting! The more you shoot the better you'll get! Trust me!
Keep shooting! The more you shoot the better you'll get! Trust me!