Couple of Birds of Prey

[Matt]

really need to learn how to use this camera, only a few more bits of tat need to be sold to pay for the sigma...

 

[MattEg]

Its a pity you can see the people in the background on the first one.

Second shot would have been better if you had focused on the birds head. Use of a macro lens would have been good to get lots of feather detail on this chap.

 

[Matt]

yeah ive been plagued by chavs this weekend, i couldnt get close enough with the lens i have, so the sigma macro cant come quick enough!

 

[MyPix]

Its a pity you can see the people in the background on the first one.

Second shot would have been better if you had focused on the birds head. Use of a macro lens would have been good to get lots of feather detail on this chap.

Matt, i know what you mean about the peeps in the background, but sometimes, as you know , its a choice of, taking the shot with the given background, or not bothering at all, its all practice, and sometimes our hands are tied buy subjects at public events,

is the real choice not to came away with any pictures at all ???

please dont get me wrong, i aint picking on you about this, but i think sometimes peeps can point out whats wrong rather than whats good in a pic ,

another factor is the equipment being used by the picture taker, i know matty has a Canon 300D , but is saving for a longer lens , but other peeps only have compacts , and to tell them the only way to get better is to spend lots of money, rather than praising the good points

i think the critique should be ballanced with the added info on the camera and or lenses used for any particular image taken

i like them both ,

MyPix ( get off his box and waits for the fallout )

 

[Oz]

Agreed. I'd have been very happy to have either of those pics to my name! Good effort Matt!

 

[CT]

No fall out from me Mr Pix, you make a fair point as far as equipment is concerned in that we have to 'Run what we brung'

I think Matt was just making the point that it IS a shame about the peeps in the background, as without them it could just as easily have appeared to been taken in the wild or at least not so obvious that it was a tethered bird. It takes time and practice (not to mention bitter experience) to become aware of potentially distracting backgrounds, but this one would have been visible in the viewfinder. Whether Eos could have moved round or not to lose those people, I don't know, but it looks as though he might have been able to do so by adopting a kneeling viewpoint?

It's still a very nice shot anyway and so is the second one, but whether you're photographing people or animals, you can get away with murder as long as the eyes are sharp. Eos has filled the frame nicely with both shots so I don't think his equipment was the limiting factor here.

 

[Matt]

the first image was taken at a 'meet the meateater' session the raptor guy had after his display, the problem was i barged to near the front but had loads of pesky kids in the way and some old woman who was trying to tap up the bloke too..the second shot was from the other side but further off, i need to learn to select focus points on the camera, that would have made that shot better, i will definately bear in mind crouching down and not being so 'linear', i will be back there a few times this year as i bought a family pass, so i have the summer to get it right.....i would have liked to get a full frame of the head too, thats why i want the longer lens, also i wont have to get so close...for those who dont have the 300d, the best way i can describe full length on the kit lens is what you see looking normally, then get the camera to your face, thats the 55mm view(or near as)

Thanks for ALL the comments guys, i read and learn from every sentance that you type!

 

[MattEg]

You have a fair point there Mypix.
Sorry Matty for not giving you a fair critique.

The first image is a good portrait shot of what looks like a Hybrid Hawk, great use of DoF.
Not trying to sound negative, I would have tried not to have a split horizon in the shot, All ground/trees or all sky.
If you crop to just the birds head it would make a more pleasing shot.

The second image shows that the bird could be isolated from the spectators.
Again like the first image a good portrait shot.

If you get the chance again Matty, ask the Falconer if you can get some shots of the bird on the ground.
You'll have to get down on your belly yourself, but the shot will be worth it. You should be able to hide the jesses in the grass making the bird look like its not captive.


I'd just like to touch on a point you've made MyPix.

The equipment shouldn't be a factor when it comes to taking the image.
If you use your imagination and think about what you are trying to achieve before you press the shutter, you'll find you come away with a more pleasing image.

I can give a good example of this, with one of our own admin team.
He used a Canon G3 and myself a Fuji S2. He constantly got better images than me on our days out, and all of this was because he learnt how to use the camera and thought about what he was going to do, I just pointed and shot.
I now find myself holding back rather than just getting a record shot, this also reduces the need to spend loads of time behind the monitor to fix complicated backgrounds.

 

[Matt]

thanks Matt, your absolutely right i do rush the shots, mainly cos ive got one eye on the subject and one on the family, i need to concentrate on what im shooting. Ive just set the camera to center focus point only, that will be a help straight away, no more in focus at the side shots! Onward and upward!





*more tat sold on ebay.......lens ahoy!!*

 

[CT]

Ive just set the camera to center focus point only,

Good move! 8)

 

[MyPix]

You have a fair point there Mypix.
Sorry Matty for not giving you a fair critique.

The first image is a good portrait shot of what looks like a Hybrid Hawk, great use of DoF.
Not trying to sound negative, I would have tried not to have a split horizon in the shot, All ground/trees or all sky.
If you crop to just the birds head it would make a more pleasing shot.

The second image shows that the bird could be isolated from the spectators.
Again like the first image a good portrait shot.

If you get the chance again Matty, ask the Falconer if you can get some shots of the bird on the ground.
You'll have to get down on your belly yourself, but the shot will be worth it. You should be able to hide the jesses in the grass making the bird look like its not captive.


I'd just like to touch on a point you've made MyPix.

The equipment shouldn't be a factor when it comes to taking the image.
If you use your imagination and think about what you are trying to achieve before you press the shutter, you'll find you come away with a more pleasing image.

I can give a good example of this, with one of our own admin team.
He used a Canon G3 and myself a Fuji S2. He constantly got better images than me on our days out, and all of this was because he learnt how to use the camera and thought about what he was going to do, I just pointed and shot.
I now find myself holding back rather than just getting a record shot, this also reduces the need to spend loads of time behind the monitor to fix complicated backgrounds.

cool
as i said, critique is good, as long as it can come with sudgestions on how to improve , if required,

i agree that equipment shouldnt be a factor, but sometimes it is, and some peeps can feel limited and think they cant produce an image equal to one taken on an DSLR or one with a $4k lens, but as mentioned, its about learning to use your kit, and getting the best from it for what it is, then moving upwards if required.
i think this comunity is heading the way of helping peeps get the best results they can at any one time, no matter what they use, but we do lean towards the DSLR end of the equipment, and this may put some compact users off puting up their images for critique possibly ??

maybe there should be more drive to encourage the ' less confident ' amoungst us to show, without the fear of ridicule, or being told they are not good ( WHICH I MUST EMPHASISE HASNT HAPPENED )

one big happy family

MyPix 8)

 

[CT]

I suppose if we lean towards and advocate the use of an SLR, it's because it really is the ultimate flexible and creative photographic tool, although you say goodbye to the convenience of slipping it in your pocket, which is a big consideration for some people.

Two relative newcomers to photography consistently turning out good work though are Kenco and Aeryk, in fact Aeryk won the last competition, and I don't believe either of them uses an SLR. :wink: