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Let me say first of all that I'm not a tripod shooter. I've got a tripod and a monopod but I like to shoot freehand so I'm really not a natural shooter of birds in flight. However the alignment of nice dry warm and sunny weather and a garden nest box full of fledgling noises, two busy blue tits (despite the neighbourhood cat) proved too much of a temptation.
Lining up the kit began with my long lens, the good old Canon L 100-400 and hang on, there's the low mileage 1Ds scooped a few months ago. How hard can this be? Setting up about twelve feet back from the box. Right here we go, we'll shoot and adapt.
Not a lot of time, not a lot of fun to be had with individual birds "on the doorstep" of the box and capturing them in flight seems like the right thing to aim for.
Shutter speed up to catch birds in flight as they burst out of the box.... man these things are fast! Wait a minute though.... not much light going in there, let's bump the ISO up.
Tip the photos out and what have we got? Mostly no birds in flight - already gone of course and some VERY motion blurred birds. Oh heck!
Shutter speed even higher and ISO even higher to compensate, nope still not fit for anything and I seem to be creating impressionist water colours!
Wait a minute.... let's try the 5DII. It might not have the same rate of fire but if I can get the shutter faster and the ISO higher? Well, maybe just maybe. Just need the birds to cooperate now.
Man this stuff is really hard, you could say it serves me right for not planning and researching my settings beforehand but, well, I like to figure things out.
Is this in any way a good photo? Well obviously not but it is the process of learning "on th job".
Hats off to anyone who does this with ability! and success!!
Lining up the kit began with my long lens, the good old Canon L 100-400 and hang on, there's the low mileage 1Ds scooped a few months ago. How hard can this be? Setting up about twelve feet back from the box. Right here we go, we'll shoot and adapt.
Not a lot of time, not a lot of fun to be had with individual birds "on the doorstep" of the box and capturing them in flight seems like the right thing to aim for.
Shutter speed up to catch birds in flight as they burst out of the box.... man these things are fast! Wait a minute though.... not much light going in there, let's bump the ISO up.
Tip the photos out and what have we got? Mostly no birds in flight - already gone of course and some VERY motion blurred birds. Oh heck!
Shutter speed even higher and ISO even higher to compensate, nope still not fit for anything and I seem to be creating impressionist water colours!
Wait a minute.... let's try the 5DII. It might not have the same rate of fire but if I can get the shutter faster and the ISO higher? Well, maybe just maybe. Just need the birds to cooperate now.
Man this stuff is really hard, you could say it serves me right for not planning and researching my settings beforehand but, well, I like to figure things out.
Is this in any way a good photo? Well obviously not but it is the process of learning "on th job".
Hats off to anyone who does this with ability! and success!!
