A few birds in flight…

[Dennis]

Hello,

Here are some more portraits of some the amazing bird life on Moreton Island, some 30 kms across the bay from Brisbane. We have annual “Island Passes” which give us unlimited day trips so we often visit on those sunny days.:)

The Swallows are so swift and agile that I find it impossible to get a decent shot of a Swallow in flight, so I park myself to where a pair have adopted a branch as a perch and fire off at 7 frames per second as they come in and depart. Lo and behold, if I am lucky, 1 in 100 shots manages to produce a result!:P

The Osprey was posing on top of the crane that loads/unloads luggage from the ferry, allowing me to get some nice close ups.:)

The Whistling Kite was perched low down in a tree allowing another close up shot.:)

I haven’t yet figured out if the soldier crabs were fighting, dancing with the stars or mating!:shrug:

Thanks for looking.

Dennis

[AstralTraveller]

Just great. Very impressive. I'd love to be able to take shots like that. Could you tell us what gear you use and the camera settings?

[Visionoz]

Great ones Dennis! I like especially the "tango-ing" crabs!:thumbsup:

Cheers
Bill

[Jeffkop]

Awesome action shots Dennis .. I particularly like the osprey flying in No 4 ... When I looked it immediately reminded me Ive seen something similar in that pose ... The undercarriage is the main trigger here ... a 747 landing.

Great colours & contrasts ... nature provides a wealth of willing subjects does she not.

[multiweb]

Great stuff as usual Dennis. Looks like you had some clear blue skies up north lately. :thumbsup:

[oosh]

All awesome as usual Dennis.. love the crabs mate!

[Dennis]

Thanks for the comments everyone, birds in flight can be a tricky subject and a lot of luck is required.:)

David - for most of my BIF photos, I use the Canon 400mm F5.6L on either a 40D or 7D. I generally shoot at 1/1600 sec, F5.6 and ISO400 although I may change this up or down by 1 to 1 ½ stops depending on time of day, background and the direction of the light.

Cheers

Dennis

[AstralTraveller]

Thanks. That lens is on my shopping list (to go on my 400D). I can't afford anything bigger so it's great to see what can be done with that gear. When my shots don't turn out so good I'll only have myself to blame. :D

[suma126]

great shots of the birds but the crabs take first place :thumbsup:

[Paddy]

Great shots Dennis. And thanks for the information about your equipment. I am contemplating a long lens for my 500D for bird shots. I've been thinking of a Sigma 50-500 zoom but also wondering about spending a bit more and getting the Canon 400mm F5.6. as I imagine that it would be better quality. My reservation is that without image stabilising it might be very hard to use hand held with the small sensor of my camera giving a fl of 560mm. Do you think this would be a major issue or is it just ridiculous to think of using even the sigma with IS hand held?

[AstralTraveller]

Paddy,

check out this thread, especially hotspur's comments.

http://www.iceinspace.com.au/forum/showthread.php?t=70712

[Paddy]

Thanks David. Makes me lean more to the Canon 400 L.

Other thoughts would be welcome.

[Dennis]

Hi Paddy

The 400mm F5.6L is a nice lens. Through reading posts and reviews on various photography forums and lens review sites, it appears to be the de facto “bird in flight” lens for those who cannot afford the 500mm F4L or 600mm F4L.

The auto focus is very fast which is important for birds in flight. The lens is (relatively) lightweight so I do not experience any sense of discomfort or fatigue even after carrying it around for 3 to 4 hours.

The lens is sharp wide open.

I have used it mainly in bright daylight so the F5.6 aperture is not really a limitation. Under a forest canopy, at dawn/dusk or under dull skies this may be a problem unless you bump up the ISO setting to allow for a suitable shutter speed to minimise camera shake.

When shooting BIF I don’t think that IS is important as I shoot at around 1/1600 sec to minimize camera shake and motion blur.

It is a specialised lens so unless you plan to do a lot of BIF, sport, surf shots, air shows, etc. then it may not be a suitable investment if it only sees the light of day once or twice a year.

Although it is light weight and easily carried all day, I have obtained my most pleasing results and outdoor experiences when I park myself in one location for a few hours with the lens mounted on very good tripod with either a very good ball head (I have a PhotoClam) or a Gimbal Head (I have a Jobu Design model). Having it mounted thus allows me to pan within a defined “strip” of sky whereas handheld, the movement is a lot jerkier as you track a BIF and try to keep it centred.

My standard settings are:
Centre AF point.
AF Servo
High speed drive mode (either 3 or 7 frames a second depending on target)
Manual mode: 1/1600 sec, F5.6, ISO 400 (modified for light/dark plumage)

I really like this lens and for me, it is a definite keeper!

Cheers

Dennis

[Paddy]

Thanks for your very comprehensive response Dennis. I have the kit 17-55 and 55-250 lenses that came with the camera and I'm quite happy with them for most purposes. I really am just interested in getting good bird pictures. I live in the bush and there are lots around from eagles to Fairy Wrens and I'd like to get better pictures of them more conveniently than with my ED80. Especially the myriad Thornbills, Pardalotes etc. I take the camera on every walk through the bush so it will see plenty of work. I won't be investing in a 500mm any time before I win tattslotto (and I don't buy tickets) so 400 mm sounds like it.

Hoping for a good tax cheque...

[SkyViking]

These are very impressive Dennis, you are an excellent photographer!
I particularly enjoy #4, and the crabs :D

[Dennis]

Thanks Rolf. The Osprey was perched on top of the crane on the jetty at Tangalooma and I couldn’t believe my luck as I slowly approached and the bird didn’t seem too concerned.

I even had time to set up the tripod and fit the 400mm on the ball head and I spent probably 5 minutes watching its behaviour before the bird decided to fly off. I noticed the head move from side to side and I got the sense of an impending launch so I clicked the shutter and when the mirror returned, there was no bird in the viewfinder. I played back the image and saw that I had captured the moment just after take off and as a bonus, it was in focus! It was a good day!:)

We’ve spent a lot of time relaxing on the beach watching hordes of these soldier crabs going about their business but this is the 1st time we have seen then sparring. It wasn’t possible to determine if it was territorial or courting behaviour, but it certainly provided a new photo opportunity for me. It was a good day indeed.:):)

Cheers

Dennis

[gary]

Hi Dennis,

As usual, what can I say, except for spectacular! I love them!

Have you had the opportunity to visit Kakadu yet? If not, I commend it to you
as the bird life is absolutely prolific, the light just perfect and I can just envision you there spending
countless hours photographing around the many billabongs and waterways in your usual inimitable style.

Best Regards

Gary

[bloodhound31]

I really think I am wasting my time with my 70-200L when I see stuff like this. Magnificent creatures well photographed mate.

Baz.

[hotspur]

Hi Paddy.

That 400 L lens is such a great lens of bird photography-you will not be disappointed-well worth the money,The Sigma lens you mention,is really a 'make do' lens-you will always feel a bit short changed in the field with it-therefore its not cheap-its expensive-as you will get home open up images and go 'H,mmm' open up the images from the 400 L-and you will go 'Oh yes!:))

I have used the 400 L on my 450D similar to your 500D,and have been very impressed with the results-right from day one-in fact I feel the results are equal or better than results from my 50D.

I have changed my approach to using the settings to Dennis,lately-I have started using narrower AV-very important when close to small birds.Partial metering instead of spot,and AV mode-dial up required exp comp as needed,or lower/raise ISO

Good luck with your purchase whatever it is.Here is an image I took of Variegated Wren last week,iso320,spedd 640,AV 8,partial metering,with 50D