Beginner Learning to shoot birds on a 400mm....

[RedRobin]

The light was a little better today although very changeable and so I was determined to practice using my new 400mm lens. These 4 shots were all taken within a 20 minute period from within about 30ft of my front door.

Canon 70D, Canon 400mm f5.6L, on Manfrotto monopod with fluid base and video head.

^ #1: ISO 800, f22, 1/800, Tv prog, major crop.

^ #2: ISO 800, f5.6, 1/800, Tv prog, minor crop.

^ #3: ISO 800, f13, 1/1000, Tv prog, massive crop.

^ #4: ISO 800, f8, 1/1000, Tv prog, big crop.

Comments welcomed.

 

[u8myufo]

You could try getting closer to your subjects Robin, not really sure why you are using TV mode though. As you can see by the aperture values of F22 in #1 and F13 in #3, you don`t really need that, try and use the sweet spot for that lens.

 

[mac124]

I would agree those settings are just way off iso 800 F22 1/800?? Get the camera off TV, use AV if you must (i do most of the time) that way you can choose the F number and ISO just keep an eye on the shutter speed to keep it fast enough.

 

[the black fox]

got to agree with the above comments robin ,most wildlife peeps tend to use either a/v mode or manual exposure . the lens will shoot sharp wide open at f5.6 so why stop down to f22 .put it in a/v mode set the aperture to anywhere between f5.6 and f8 set your iso to either auto or an appropriate to the light setting .check your shutter speed is above focal length + crop factor i.e 1/750th sec and play all day .
my gut feeling is your worrying to much about shutter speed /vibration/i.s than you should and have in fact gone the wrong way about it as you have actually cut down the lenses ability to freeze action by cutting down your shutter speed .use the settings i have outlined and throw away that monopod you got a lightweight set up .

p.s and learn to get closer to your subjects ,bread,seed ,peanuts etc in your pocket at all times ,go down to radipole and practise on the ducks ,or down the harbour with a loaf of hovis or two you'll soon have willing models lining up

like this two slices of bread is all it takes

flight practise by blackfox wildlife and nature imaging, on Flickr

 

[RedRobin]

Those are both interesting and helpful comments, Rich and Mark - Appreciated and why I posted my settings so I might learn and improve.

Apart from #2 it wasn't physically possible to get closer to my subjects due to unsurmountable objects like buildings for #1 & #4 and a road for #3. The Jackdaw in #3 is about 50ft up a big tree across the road. A chap I know wearing a hard hat and high-vis jacket was talking to me (in my drive) while I grabbed #2, which is the least cropped partly because I like the background.

I started off setting ISO 800 as an acceptable balance between noise and achieving higher speed and aperture settings because I was anticipating possibly shooting birds in flight.

I had set the speed on Tv to 1/800 for the same flight reason and then changed it to 1/1000 when freezing a Jackdaw launching from the red brick building failed.

I felt happy at the time and in ignorance of what you call "the sweet spot" about the aperture swinging and also because the light kept changing.

So what is "the sweet spot" for the Canon 400mm f5.6L, please?

 

[ChrisGilbert]

I use the 400L as well. I would recommend you use P mode and with the 70D set to ISO 800. That way the camera will give you the best combination of shutter and aperture that it can give you with the available light and with an acceptable level of noise. I would counsel against a tripod. A monopod would be better. Rest your free (left) hand over the top the lens at the mount point. It will lend mass to the camera without compromising movement.

 

[RedRobin]

got to agree with the above comments robin ,most wildlife peeps tend to use either a/v mode or manual exposure . the lens will shoot sharp wide open at f5.6 so why stop down to f22 .put it in a/v mode set the aperture to anywhere between f5.6 and f8 set your iso to either auto or an appropriate to the light setting .check your shutter speed is above focal length + crop factor i.e 1/750th sec and play all day .

my gut feeling is your worrying to much about shutter speed /vibration/i.s than you should and have in fact gone the wrong way about it as you have actually cut down the lenses ability to freeze action by cutting down your shutter speed .use the settings i have outlined and throw away that monopod you got a lightweight set up .

....I have been using Av on my 70-200mm f4L lens and beginning, as you know, to improve on that lens. So I'll try using Av on the 400mm.

Re ISO, I am finding that ISO 800 is about the usually acceptable limit on my 70D but I can set it back to Auto and even put a limit on it.

Your gut feeling is right - I am concerned about shutter speed/vibration and I really dislike the 'wobbley' view which a handheld 400 gives me - It doesn't feel steady enough and makes it difficult to compose. But I will take your advice and try more handheld.

As an experiment I took a shot of a fence post in my garden at the minimum focus distance of around 12ft, in Tv, in very poor light but ISO still set at ISO 800 and had to slide the shutter speed down to 1/200 on f5.6. The result is amazingly well exposed and sharp but it was the monopod which enabled me to shoot at 1/200 as the aperture of f5.6 could not be opened up further.

 

[RedRobin]

I use the 400L as well. I would recommend you use P mode and with the 70D set to ISO 800. That way the camera will give you the best combination of shutter and aperture that it can give you with the available light and with an acceptable level of noise. I would counsel against a tripod. A monopod would be better. Rest your free (left) hand over the top the lens at the mount point. It will lend mass to the camera without compromising movement.

....When I first bought my 70D (on 7th December) I used P prog as it does deliver results and gives confidence that it's possible! You can also slide and rebalance the combination of speed and aperture in P but sometimes you need to freeze either aperture or speed due to subject DoF or movement.

Your tip, Chris, about left hand over the top above the fulcrum sounds excellent - I'll give it a try. Let's see if the light is kind enough today.

There is no doubt in my mind that using my very fluid monopod greatly contributes to steadying the results and also helps me compose in camera. But I will continue to try both with and without it before I reach a point where I decide to sell it - It's a useful option to have anyway, methinks.

 

[u8myufo]

I use the 400L as well. I would recommend you use P mode and with the 70D set to ISO 800. That way the camera will give you the best combination of shutter and aperture that it can give you with the available light and with an acceptable level of noise. I would counsel against a tripod. A monopod would be better. Rest your free (left) hand over the top the lens at the mount point. It will lend mass to the camera without compromising movement.

That is some poor advice for bird photography, as mentioned manual or Av is the choice of most. In P mode you cannot make any adjustments on the fly to shutter or aperture, only through adjusting the ISO. In most instances the OP should get as close as he can to his subject, secondly use a good support such as a bean bag or tripod, lastly even with the use of a good support a good technique of holding the camera breathing technique and gently squeezing the shutter is needed. I would sooner Robin posted a picture of a Ping Pong ball 15ft away using those techniques and then ask where he is going wrong if it does not look sharp.

 

[pooley]

I use the 400L as well. I would recommend you use P mode and with the 70D set to ISO 800. That way the camera will give you the best combination of shutter and aperture that it can give you with the available light and with an acceptable level of noise.

I'm sorry Chris, but IMHO this is quite poor advice. Allowing the camera to choose both aperture and shutter speed for subjects that flit around one moment, briefly pause, then take off in flight is asking for trouble. Sure, you will get the odd shot where the camera has replicated optimum settings, but far too often you are going to be stuck with inappropriate settings for the subject.

With this lens and the subject matter you need to find a way of keeping your shutter speed up to avoid any motion blur. If your subject is stationary, then providing you have sufficient support to your rig then you can lower it to allow for a smaller aperture and more depth of field, and there are numerous ways of achieving this, but using 'P' is right at the bottom of the list. A lot of successful photographers use semi-auto modes these days, but with birds, you'll find very few good photographers using 'P'.

Robin, I'd strongly suggest that for starters you get used to using Av mode. The canon 400mm f5.6 is well regarded as a lens that is sharp wide open, so unless you're shooting in nice bright light - very rare at this time of year! - then start off shooting wide open. Your 70d will perform to a decent standard at ISO 1600 no problem providing you get the exposure right and do not have to crop too much. I've also read your comments elsewhere that a little bit of noise does not bother you. Keep an eye on your shutter speed, use good support and away you go. Then, as you get used to your gear you can look at when to lower the ISO for a better quality shot, and start using exposure compensation to fine tune your camera to get the results you're after.

Take your gear down to the local pond and start practicing on the ducks / geese/ gulls etc. You should be able to look at framing these as you see fit, therefor reducing the need to crop too much, then once you're happy with your results, move maybe to somewhere that has a feeding station and allows you to get close to smaller, more difficult to shoot, subjects.

More than anything, post your results here, and be prepared to listen to the crit given. There are a couple of photographers here that have done just that and are improving at a rapid rate of knots

 

[ChrisGilbert]

That is some poor advice for bird photography

Yeah, I've had some rubbish results with that approach.....

 

[u8myufo]

Yeah, I've had some rubbish results with that approach.....

Sorry Chris are you refering to landscape or bird shots? I will still stand by my word, using P mode for someone who is setting out doing bird photography is not the ideal way. If you find that to be wrong then correct me as I am quite willing to learn as much as the next person, but try and give some reasons instead of sarcastic remarks.

 

[omens]

IIRC the P-mode on the 70D allows you to adjust the aperture/shutter combination to maintain the same exposure once you've half-pressed the shutter (and released I think). So in theory, you could use P-mode, half-press shutter and then fiddle with the dial to change to a suitable combo of aperture and shutter speed. Bird might fly away in the meantime

RR, #2 is my fave shot!

 

[dinners]

For what it's worth here's what I do for static birds at 400mm.

Camera set to AV
Choose the aperture I want based on the depth of focus I would like or need for the size of bird. Something like f8 would be optimal.
Set ISO to 400 (starter for 10)
With the above two settings set, check the resulting shutter speed to ensure its around 1/400

If shutter speed is too slow - increase the ISO till the shutter speed is adequate.

If ISO is already at the max I like to use - I'll increase the aperture.

If (like often happens in Scotland) ISO is maxed and aperture is maxed and shutter speed is still too slow - reduce expectations :rage:

 

[RedRobin]

I'm sorry Chris, but IMHO this is quite poor advice. Allowing the camera to choose both aperture and shutter speed for subjects that flit around one moment, briefly pause, then take off in flight is asking for trouble. Sure, you will get the odd shot where the camera has replicated optimum settings, but far too often you are going to be stuck with inappropriate settings for the subject.

....Yes, I recall starting off using P on my daughter's 100D for a group portrait session outdoors and allowing the camera's software to select the aperture-speed balance and it takes away a lot of control. It's rather like leaving my car in fully automatic (great for town and traffic queues) for fun bends rather than popping her into the gears and being in the right gear at the right instant by being in fuller control.

With this lens and the subject matter you need to find a way of keeping your shutter speed up to avoid any motion blur. If your subject is stationary, then providing you have sufficient support to your rig then you can lower it to allow for a smaller aperture and more depth of field, and there are numerous ways of achieving this, but using 'P' is right at the bottom of the list. A lot of successful photographers use semi-auto modes these days, but with birds, you'll find very few good photographers using 'P'.

....Keeping my shutter speed up by having control of it is why I chose Tv prog. But I usually use Av prog on my 70-200mm with some +/- ev. It seems that even at f5.6 the 400mm delivers better than expected DoF (see my garden's fence post pic below).

Robin, I'd strongly suggest that for starters you get used to using Av mode. The canon 400mm f5.6 is well regarded as a lens that is sharp wide open, so unless you're shooting in nice bright light - very rare at this time of year! - then start off shooting wide open. Your 70d will perform to a decent standard at ISO 1600 no problem providing you get the exposure right and do not have to crop too much. I've also read your comments elsewhere that a little bit of noise does not bother you. Keep an eye on your shutter speed, use good support and away you go. Then, as you get used to your gear you can look at when to lower the ISO for a better quality shot, and start using exposure compensation to fine tune your camera to get the results you're after.

....Yes, I'll try going back to Av and set my ISO to Auto with a ISO 1600 max ('auto max' is a useful option on the 70D). To begin with I will maximise my chances by continuing to use the support of my monopod - I'm sure it's what delivered a stable shot with my 400 lens wide open and only 1/200 shutter speed - I was pleasantly surprised and that was at the minimum 12ft distance as well, and in poor light. It was an experiment to show myself what would happen. Boring fence post subject but here it is:

^ Canon 70D, 400mm f5.6L at minimum 12ft distance, ISO 800, f5.6, 1/200, on monopod.

Take your gear down to the local pond and start practicing on the ducks / geese/ gulls etc. You should be able to look at framing these as you see fit, therefor reducing the need to crop too much, then once you're happy with your results, move maybe to somewhere that has a feeding station and allows you to get close to smaller, more difficult to shoot, subjects.

....Local ponds around here are much wilder - Cormorant, Otter, Kingfisher, wild Mallard, Water Voles, Moorhen, Dragonflies (in flight season) - and hence trickier but I understand the principle. Loads of Seagulls, so. My garden is well stocked with a feeding station - The regular Dunnock, Robin, and Blackbirds are the most cooperative. Lots if Tits but they're very fast.

More than anything, post your results here, and be prepared to listen to the crit given. There are a couple of photographers here that have done just that and are improving at a rapid rate of knots

....I hopefully have already shown that I am prepared to listen and learn - An earlier thread in which Jeff 'the black fox' has been particularly helpful and whom I blame for spending my money on the 400mm f5.6L from TP's Classifieds!:

http://www.talkphotography.co.uk/threads/a-grey-day-in-west-bay.522243

I'm raring to go (my daughter is fed up with me wanting to photograph everything) and just need it to stop raining and have some decent light.

One thing though - I am very happy indeed with my ability to capture a moment and to compose a picture which puts the subject in context and with atmosphere, even if heavily cropped at times.

I will be posting more as and when and appreciate everyone's input

 

[RedRobin]

IIRC the P-mode on the 70D allows you to adjust the aperture/shutter combination to maintain the same exposure once you've half-pressed the shutter (and released I think). So in theory, you could use P-mode, half-press shutter and then fiddle with the dial to change to a suitable combo of aperture and shutter speed. Bird might fly away in the meantime

RR, #2 is my fave shot!

....At last! Someone has said they like one of my bird pictures! Thanks, Jas.

I have started using the 'AF-ON back button' technique which holds focus and AI-SERVO and leaves you free to fire the shutter at any time without a refocus etc. It sits very naturally for my thumb on the 70D.

Yes, P prog works exactly as you describe and delivers a well exposed result but you need to control/bias either DoF or shutter speed with wildlife which tends to move. P is just like staying in D on a DSG gearbox instead of the control offered by M. I know this is something you are familiar with!

 

[omens]

IIRC the half press is to lock exposure too, not just shutter. I can't really say much because I haven't touched my camera for a whole month! shock horror!

 

[RedRobin]

IIRC the half press is to lock exposure too, not just shutter. I can't really say much because I haven't touched my camera for a whole month! shock horror!

....Shame on you! I use mine every day I can, providing there is reasonable light. I only planned to buy the Canon 100mm f2.8L Macro with my 70D, no other lenses, but I have ended up with the additional 2 telephoto lenses and enjoy using them. All thanks to TP Classifieds (I shouldn't have looked).

The point of using the Back-Button Focus technique is to separate the shutter release. It's particularly helpful when you use AI-SERVO and centre spot only sensor, both of which I do most of the time. All this depends on what subjects you shoot - Mine is about 90% wildlife.

 

[the black fox]

robin rome wasn't built in a day ,the light lately has been appalling even on sunny days .but the advise i gave you is based on several years of doing rather well with this lens and various camera combo's .how you decide to apply that advise is the thing; remember i asked you on the phone if you suffer from the shakes etc ..
put in the settings i gave you ,if possible take a couple of test shots to determine the iso needed DO NOT USE auto as its throwing another variable in the equation ,the 70d will happily shoot clean images up to 3200iso i have seen it done .give you a link in a minute .
if your worrying about the shakes ,try this one .loosen the tripod mount screw and turn it till the grip is on top ,result 1 you have a crude aiming sight 2 you can now actually cradle the lens in your palm and grip it better .forget the monopod its not needed .
one here from my sons g/f taken on a 60d hand held at 400mm iso 3200
http://www.flickr.com/photos/59451390@N03/11755438174/in/photostream/

 

[den]

Robin , I have used the 400mm 5.6 for years its the only lens I use and nearly all my shots on here and my website are taken with it ,there is no doubt I wouldn't have got no were near as many keepers with it with my kingfishers and owl without a tripod, I have no option but to get close to my subject ,the bean bag support is paramount with this lens as well especially in hides ,I shoot at 5.6 nearly all the time as I find the lens pretty sharp wide open,patience and practice and good advice from the guys on the forum will also get you their .

 

[RedRobin]

Hi Jeff,

As I recall, I should whenever possible shoot in Av prog on 1/750 minimum and that ISO 1600 is a practical max noise level. So, I'll set the ISO as a fixed value of 1600, not Auto ISO. And for flight shots, shift the EV just a tad either way accordingly to compensate the sky brightness.

I like the idea of swinging the tripod mount knob (not the foot) to act as a crude gun sight. Then I can get my face out of the viewfinder and watch the scene in Live View. I'll try it but I do like the fluid monopod and eye in viewfinder for birds while they're not in flight, or even capturing their launch into flight.

For my taste, that example you posted of your son's g/f's shot is just too unnaturally sharp for my liking - To me it looks like too much of a post-processed cut out but I appreciate it's posted as an example of ISO 3200 handheld. I love that shot of hers of the female Tufted Duck - That's the perfect level of natural sharpness for my taste.

 

[dinorock]

Sorry Chris are you refering to landscape or bird shots? I will still stand by my word, using P mode for someone who is setting out doing bird photography is not the ideal way. If you find that to be wrong then correct me as I am quite willing to learn as much as the next person, but try and give some reasons instead of sarcastic remarks.

i think you may have just lost the assitance of one of the best bird photographers on this forum "sarcastic" i don't think he was being sarcastic he offered some very good professional advice and some one says use p mode. :banghead: i don't think so. sorry rich that might read wrong i hope it makes sense cheers mike

 

[RedRobin]

i think you may have just lost the assitance of one of the best bird photographers on this forum "sarcastic" i don't think he was being sarcastic he offered some very good professional advice and some one says use p mode. :banghead: i don't think so. sorry rich that might read wrong i hope it makes sense cheers mike

....Hopefully, some highly respected togs on this forum will not have a falling out or cessation of assistance/advice just because of one post. It's well known that it's very easy to misinterpret what's written on an internet forum as it of course doesn't include voice tone or body language (unless you rely solely on smilies). It's also just as easy to write what you don't quite intend as the meaning.

Anyway, I think that whereas P prog is a safe way to achieve a usually good exposure there is much more to an image/photo which can be achieved by using what Canon call the 'Creative' progs of Tv/Av/M which in fact are the fundamental building blocks of good photography. I am a beginner on DSLR (since 7th December) but not a beginner in photography.

 

[dinorock]

They are called modes not programs and "p" a program mode is the equivalent of auto not recommended by most use a use s or use m but p

 

[RedRobin]

The light for photography was better today, although still changeable at first. So after taking some of the advice given in this thread, here are my best efforts today....

^ Canon 70D, 400mm f5.6L, ISO 3200, f5.6, 1/400, monopod (I like my fluid head & foot monopod!).
Definitely my best shot today. In my garden and so the branch in the foreground has now been cut off so future shots will be less obstructed.

^ Canon 70D, 400mm f5.6, ISO 3200, f5.6, 1/1000, monopod.
Not focussed well enough. In hindsight I could have slid up the aperture value to reduce the shutter speed, or changed ISO setting but those Titties don't hang about!

^ Canon 70D, 400mm f5.6, ISO 1600, f5.6, 1/8000, handheld.
Ooops! Plenty of scope to have changed my speed/aperture/ISO but you just have to grab the shots when they quickly appear - Over the eaves of my roof in this case. I'm thinking of submitting this as my photo for my driving licence renewal.

If it wasn't for the branch in the foreground I think that #1 of the Dunnock would be a winner. Fortunately that Dunnock isn't very shy of me and visits my garden every day, so there will be future opportunities. I have now trimmed that wild rose bush very specifically to help my photography.

Comments invited - Thanks

 

[dexter35yrs]

some really good advice here that i'll also be following as i've just got a 120-300 2.8 + converters - i am also just starting to get into birds, thanks guys

 

[the black fox]

a most definite improvement robin .it does take time and at least your aware of your own limitations and are striving to learn .although i don't like birds on feeder shots the blue tit would have been better served without the glare on the right of the picture

i.e

red rob re-worked 1 by blackfox wildlife and nature imaging, on Flickr

and a little bit of work and thought before posting .unless your willing to do this stick to j/pegs .not my best work but i didn't have good files to work with LOL


red rob re-worked 2 by blackfox wildlife and nature imaging, on Flickr

 

[RedRobin]

a most definite improvement robin .it does take time and at least your aware of your own limitations and are striving to learn .although i don't like birds on feeder shots the blue tit would have been better served without the glare on the right of the picture

and a little bit of work and thought before posting .unless your willing to do this stick to j/pegs .not my best work but i didn't have good files to work with LOL

....I agree totally about the 'glare' part on the right of my original but I was presenting my efforts as a whole when posting this particular image. This thread is primarily to post my efforts, listen to feedback and hence to learn - For others perhaps as well as myself. I'm happy to practice photographing birds at my garden's 'BirdCafe' as it's both very convenient and a good photo is a good photo wherever it is shot.

My square crop on the Gull only cropped off irrelevant photographic info - Just more of the same blue sky and black guttering to each side in original 3 x 2 format.

Your removal of the foreground's branch on my Dunnock shot is very impressive indeed even if you know you could have done it even better with loads more time - Thankyou! However, I want to carry on shooting in RAW and learn by doing so. I only export from Apple's Aperture to JPEG for displaying online. I haven't joined Flickr yet.

Personally I wouldn't want to edit any photo of mine to the extent of that branch removal - Part of my satisfaction comes from achieving images with minimal editing, just a few tweaks to some settings. There'll always be future opportunities to try to get a better shot. For example, my original Dunnock photo shows me I'm improving but I'll bin it as soon as I get a better one of the Dunnock.

 

[the black fox]

LOL robin ,just proving it could be done really .you have done the best thing by pruning the bush .editing a photo is part of the joys of digital RAW and in reality no different from dodging with weird shaped bits of cardboard in a darkroom under the stairs while getting as high as a kite on bromide and fixer fumes .ye gods i miss them days of yore :arghh::arghh::arghh:
and although its your thread as we have seen others are taking a interest and will hopefully see what can be done if needed .

 

[RedRobin]

I feel that I am making progress. First of 10 keepers from 107 shots today, all on the Canon 400mm f5.6L and all in my back garden.

^ Blue Tit #1: Canon 70D, 400mm f5.6L, ISO 1600, f9, 1/1600, 0 EV, Av-mode.

I left the ISO at 1600 all day because my garden has varieties of shade and also so I could familiarise myself with how ISO 1600 behaves on my Canon 70D.

Comments please!

 

[the black fox]

your starting to get there robin though i suspect you haven't listened to advise ,you could easily have got away with f5.6 to f7.1 here and got a sharper shot with lower iso and less noise .unlike film photography a smaller aperture does not mean a sharper image in digital in fact it can start to go down hill rapidly with these longer lenses .but this is a definite improvement and i bet you feel good about it

 

[RedRobin]

Hi Jeff, yes I am feeling good about today's photos and will be posting more very shortly.

You're right, I should have remembered to slide down the aperture but I did decide consciously to stay on ISO 1600 today to see what would happen. I need to practice changing settings on the fly on the 70D. As you posted earlier, it all takes time to learn and doesn't happen overnight.

I'm afraid that all today's shots are ISO 1600 but that's how I can see and learn the result of that particular ISO value.

 

[RedRobin]

This one was a very quickly grabbed shot as the Robin suddenly appeared only a few feet away alongside me on my log pile, so close that I had to step back to achieve any focus.

^ Robin #2: Canon 70D, 400mm f5.6L, ISO 1600, f9, 1/2500, 0 EV, Av-mode.

Fortunately I tend to use centre-spot sensor for metering and so the extreme lighting wasn't a problem in achieving a correct exposure on the bird.

 

[the black fox]

good grab shot robin ,if you had waited it would probably have looked at you ,you have to catch there attention without scaring them off .

 

[RedRobin]

good grab shot robin ,if you had waited it would probably have looked at you ,you have to catch there attention without scaring them off .

....He had just looked at me but by the time I was ready to shoot and focussed he looked away and I just got this shot in time.

Next shot coming up is the same Robin.

 

[RedRobin]

^ Robin #3: Canon 70D, 400mm f5.6L, ISO 1600, f9, 1/1600, 0 EV, Av-mode.

Taken 7 seconds after Robin #2 on the next log he hopped onto. I got 3 one shots, not 'machine gunned' and this was the best. Just sides are cropped.

 

[RedRobin]

^ Robin #4: Canon 70D, 400mm f5.6L, ISO 1600, f9, 1/125 (that's not a typo!), 0 EV, Av-mode.

This time in the shade, hence the slower shutter speed and again I didn't make time to open up the aperture - I MUST practice that!

This would probably would not have been possible without my monopod (with fluid video head) which I really like using as it allows me to more comfortably hold a position in anticipation and yet the fluid head gives a lot of flexibility.

 

[Deleted member 66071]

ONWARDS AND UPWARDS ROBIN GETTING THERE THESE CRITTERS ARE NOT EASY TO OBTAIN SHOTS
GEORGE

 

[the black fox]

NOW YOUR COOKING ON GAS ,there both super shots of a robin robin ,extremely hard to pick or find fault with either shot WELL DONE MATE

 

[RedRobin]

Last shot of the Robin today....

^ Robin #5: Canon 70D, 400mm f5.6L, ISO 1600, f9, 1/250, 0 EV, Av-mode, monopod (as all were today).

Background in strong sunlight, subject in shade. Not cropped. #4 also not cropped.

More from today to follow, but not Robins.....