Bearded Tits (1st for me :) )

gramps

gramps

Messages
41,940
Name
'Gramps'
Edit My Images
No
Had a great day with RedRobin yesterday down at RSPB Radipole and Lodmoor at Weymouth.
My hope was to be able to see and if possible photograph some Bearded Tits and with Robin showing me around I was not disappointed :)
These are fabulous little birds, the males being particularly well marked and they were spending their time feeding on the tops of the light reeds, which occasionally dropped right down under their weight.
With the sea breeze moving both them and the reeds and often shooting across and in between reeds it was challenging to get a clean shot but I was delighted to have been able to come away with a few keepers.

D4S with the Tamron 150-600


1.

View attachment 31012


2.


View attachment 31014


3.

View attachment 31015

4.

View attachment 31016


5.

View attachment 31017
 
Fabulous set. My particular favourite is No1 - shows all the lovely markings of these birds.
 
Excellent set. #2 for me but I would be happy with any of them.
I notice you used the Tamron 150-600, Overall how are you getting on with this lens, I'm thinking of getting this but reviews are mixed, the examples above are a great advert for it. The sigma is also a contender but the weight of the sigma is a big, big factor.
I was just wondering if you would share your experiences with the lens.
 
One and two are my choice, but I do like them all really. Its a beautiful bird, one I haven't seen yet, you've done well to capture these. Its also showing the Tamron as a lens that can justify its keep.
 
boogie 16 said:
Excellent set. #2 for me but I would be happy with any of them.
I notice you used the Tamron 150-600, Overall how are you getting on with this lens, I'm thinking of getting this but reviews are mixed, the examples above are a great advert for it. The sigma is also a contender but the weight of the sigma is a big, big factor.
I was just wondering if you would share your experiences with the lens.
Click to expand...

John I very much like the Tamron, it is light and easy for me to carry around and have a 600mm that doesn't need a tripod.
I benefits from good light but can cope with a reasonably good ISO camera body ... my only issue has been a very occasional AF fail to activate, quick on/off of the camera sorts it and happens only very rarely.
Great value for money lens IMO :)
 
Great set! The conditions were very tricky and your tripod+gimbal definitely paid off.

#2 and #5 have 'The WOW!-factor' for me but I also love the atmosphere captured in #3.
 
well shot Roger- what a lovely subject too

Nice to see the Tamron being put to good use

Les

Ps No sign of Mating Grebes at Ham Wall as yet
 
gramps said:
John I very much like the Tamron, it is light and easy for me to carry around and have a 600mm that doesn't need a tripod.
I benefits from good light but can cope with a reasonably good ISO camera body ... my only issue has been a very occasional AF fail to activate, quick on/off of the camera sorts it and happens only very rarely.
Great value for money lens IMO :)
Click to expand...

Gramps. Thanks very much for the info on your Tamron.
 
RedRobin said:
Great set! The conditions were very tricky and your tripod+gimbal definitely paid off.

#2 and #5 have 'The WOW!-factor' for me but I also love the atmosphere captured in #3.
Click to expand...

Thanks Robin, I actually found the tripod to be a hindrance with the reeds, hence why it got left on the pathway most of the time ... good job the Tamron is light enough for me to handhold :)
 
Congratulations,you have set yourself a very high bar to beat those.
 
Thanks Mike, it was great to see them and have the opportunity to photograph them :)
 
Ahh wonderful! Never been so lucky to see these birds whenever i have visited, makes me think i should go! Or rather want to !! Hehe

#4 really stands out to me gramps!! Glad you and RedRobin had a good day! :)
 
Fantastic set, number 1 being my favourite then 5. I would imagine they would look nice on a canvas print.
 
jerry12953 said:
Fabulous photos. You and redrobin must have had a great day!
Click to expand...

We did Jeremy, it was a great experience for me just to see them :)

jerry12953 said:
It looks like your white balance might need tweaking in No 1.
Click to expand...

I take it you mean the slightly blueish head?
It is a predominant feature of that image, changing WB to 'Daylight' reduces it very slightly whilst over-warming the background.
Auto WB has no effect on it whatsoever, and just tweaking the slider is the same ... I don't know whether it's just being in shadow.
 
gramps said:
I take it you mean the slightly blueish head?
It is a predominant feature of that image, changing WB to 'Daylight' reduces it very slightly whilst over-warming the background.
Auto WB has no effect on it whatsoever, and just tweaking the slider is the same ... I don't know whether it's just being in shadow.
Click to expand...

....That is exactly the same problem I had with the ones I took at Lodmoor (by that old brick bridge I showed you, Gramps) which were strongly backlit and therefore threw the whole bird into shadow. My blueness is worse than yours, Gramps, but the shadow is deeper on mine. I think it is shadow related - It's all about temperature of light.

My thread with them is here: https://www.talkphotography.co.uk/threads/a-pair-of-tits-of-the-bearded-variety.578704/

I think it's very good that we all give our honest and often helpful feedback but occasionally we probably all look at images too intensely. I actually didn't notice the blueness until someone pointed it out but that doesn't mean that we all should find it acceptable.
 
Number 2 for me.

Lovely light, some space in the frame and good composition.
 
Jannyfox said:
Another bird I've yet to see and have to be content with your beautiful images. (Puts Weymouth on the hit list. Not a place I normally go - too many people).
Click to expand...

....Both Radipole Lake and Lodmoor are on the edge of Weymouth and there's no need to go into town. Obviously Weymouth is busier in Summer but the two reserves don't seem to get overcrowded. I'm sure that Gramps would give me a glowing reference if you ever wanted to meet there and me show you around :D, not that you need any assistance from me. There are other birds there too.
 
Lovely set Roger of a spectacular looking bird, were these handheld as tripod set up has been mentioned, if handheld then I am impressed at 600mm
 
lovely shots great looking bird youre getting some wonderful shots with that tammy
 
RKC said:
Lovely set Roger of a spectacular looking bird, were these handheld as tripod set up has been mentioned, if handheld then I am impressed at 600mm
Click to expand...

@RKC
Thanks Rob, if I remember correctly the 1st was taken using the tripod and the others handheld.
I had started out with the kit on the tripod and gimbal but found it impossible to keep up and setup with the birds moving on from reed to reed, so it was quickly abandoned as being too cumbersome and I handheld for most of the time, only putting it back on the tripod to carry it and used it again on the pathway back to the car park, (where the 1st was taken).
Although it is a 600mm the Tamron 150-600 is much lighter than a conventional 600mm prime, which I wouldn't be able to hold for long - for the 2nd half of the day I had it on a monopod and left the tripod in the car.
I can handhold it for a while without issue but generally have it either on a beanbag or tripod in a hide/static location or monopod when wandering around. :)
 
gramps said:
@RKC
Thanks Rob, if I remember correctly the 1st was taken using the tripod and the others handheld.
I had started out with the kit on the tripod and gimbal but found it impossible to keep up and setup with the birds moving on from reed to reed, so it was quickly abandoned as being too cumbersome and I handheld for most of the time, only putting it back on the tripod to carry it and used it again on the pathway back to the car park, (where the 1st was taken).
Although it is a 600mm the Tamron 150-600 is much lighter than a conventional 600mm prime, which I wouldn't be able to hold for long - for the 2nd half of the day I had it on a monopod and left the tripod in the car.
I can handhold it for a while without issue but generally have it either on a beanbag or tripod in a hide/static location or monopod when wandering around. :)
Click to expand...


Cheers Roger, bumped into someone today who had one on a 60D and was quite surprised how not so heavy it was, it focussed very quickly in poor light, hmm might consider one myself, current set up 300F4+1.4.
How far would you say you were from them and how much cropping have you done
 
They are around 33% crop Rob, distance variable ... maybe 30' to 50' :thinking:
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top