ultra sharp wildlife pics

Hobbit

Senior Member
how are people getting these ultra sharp and apparently noiseless wildlife / bird shots.
I keep trying and practicing and i might get 1 or 2 out of thousands of pics.
i look at others and the kit they are using and surely if i am using the same kit i should be getting better images than i am.
i know its practice practice practice and i try my hardest to get out but even so im not getting anywhere near the sharpness even in post.

is it the software ? or am i missing something ?

i use at the moment - D5300 - sigma 150-600C and a Nikkor AF-P 70-300

if ive put this in the wrong spot apologies TIA
 

480sparky

Senior Member
You first need to identify what is causing the softness. Is it camera movement? Lack of correct focus? A 'soft' lens? Or an element is out of alignment?
 

Hobbit

Senior Member
You first need to identify what is causing the softness. Is it camera movement? Lack of correct focus? A 'soft' lens? Or an element is out of alignment?
lenses are new on the 600mm and used on the 300mm even using a tripod they are soft, ive got them sharper by ramping up the ISO so i can up the speed but still the same , images im see are razor sharp , do not think its lenses - at least i hope its not !!!!!
, thanks for the reply :)
 

480sparky

Senior Member
lenses are new on the 600mm and used on the 300mm even using a tripod they are soft, ive got them sharper by ramping up the ISO so i can up the speed but still the same , images im see are razor sharp , do not think its lenses - at least i hope its not !!!!!
, thanks for the reply :)

If you're on a tripod, are you turning the VR off?

Yes.... off.
 

hark

Administrator
Staff member
Super Mod
Contributor
Can you post a photo with the EXIF showing so we can better help identify the problem?

If it's birds in motion, then your shutter speed should be at least 1/2000".
 

Hobbit

Senior Member
this is a Black cap from the garden
ISO 400, 500mm, +2 exposure and 1/800 , f6.3
Sigma 150-600C , D5300
 

Attachments

  • head on .jpg
    head on .jpg
    115.9 KB · Views: 53
Last edited:

hark

Administrator
Staff member
Super Mod
Contributor
to get that high the noise would be horrendous on my d5300

Not necessarily. A lot of it depends on the brightness of your scene. Here is one shot at 1/1600" with ISO 500 although it is a different body. Are you taking a lot of your images in low light?

_DSC4372 enlargement low res.jpg
 

480sparky

Senior Member
Not necessarily. A lot of it depends on the brightness of your scene. Here is one shot at 1/1600" with ISO 500 although it is a different body. Are you taking a lot of your images in low light?

ISO 500 is low these days. It might have been considered 'high' back in the 40s and 50s, but high today is, like, 6,400 and up.
 

Hobbit

Senior Member
reasonable light , if its bright light i can get up to 1/1600 @iso 400 with minimal noise and they are reasonable sharp as well and dont actually need much editing - for my eye, its then when i crop in all the detail seems to get lost
 
Top