What I've Learned from One Year of Bird Photography

[@IcedReaver]

Great tips, thanks for sharing! One thing that has worked well for me with my Fuji, is to keep it in Automatic ISO. I set the exposure time for the scene (eg high shutter speed to freeze movement) and choose f-ratio for background blur and/or manage high ISO, so I don't want to think about what my ISO should be on top of everything else so I let my camera choose. One less thing to think about!

[@FreeRoamingPhoto]

Great tip! I've definitely experimented with manual and auto ISO but never fully adjusted to it. But I'm sure it's a great setting once you're comfortable with it!

[@junebug1553]

Thanks for all these tips. If I might add, birding photographers would benefit greatly by taking some time to learn the behavior of the subjects. Take a flycatcher for instance. They like to do what's called sallying. This means they perch, look down upon any prey they may see, swoop down and catch the insect, and then watch because they fly right back up to the original perch where you can capture them both in flight and also eating the prey. Kingfishers also do this except with fish. I have found learning the behavior of certain species very helpful as I photograph birds. Thank you for an excellent video.

[@FreeRoamingPhoto]

That's great advice! Unfortunately I haven't gotten to know flycatchers as well as I'd like since they're only here for a few months. But now that they're back I'll look for that behavior. Thanks for the great addition!

[@edwardcrawford4180]

Some flycatchers do not fly back to the same perch and that behavior often is the best identifier. But, you are right, most do fly back to the same perch and so do hummers and dragonflies. Good comment.

[@beltroadfilms]

Yesterday, I captured a bluethroat bird using a macro lens. Today, I saw the stunning bird you photographed and learned a lot from it, thanks

[@FreeRoamingPhoto]

My pleasure and congrats on an exciting capture!

[@douglasmccart8963]

At long last a birder who is realistic and speaks the truth

[@davepastern]

Going to disagree here too. The OP's videos do NOT match my personal experiences over the past 3 years.

[@JustOneKnight]

Hi 👋 thanks for a great informative video 👍

[@FreeRoamingPhoto]

Hello and my pleasure!

[@Norway_Jason]

Happy trails!

[@sarahbatsford4791]

Glad your video popped up, great inspiring tipd. Thank you.

[@FreeRoamingPhoto]

My pleasure!

[@m.sabir21]

Nice video, using the extender will soften the image and reduce the light entering sensors depending on the extender.

[@FreeRoamingPhoto]

Great point! Thanks for mentioning that!

[@davepastern]

again, NOT my experiences.

[@capturingnaturewithsandip]

Truly said. That is way i am not using the extender. Nice video

[@davepastern]

and I use my EF 1.4x TC nearly 100% of the time on my 500f4 prime...it works, and it works well. Optical degradation of TC vs sans TC is negligible even if you pixel peep at 200% or more. What applies to yourself and your setup doesn't apply to everyone. If you are using say, a Sigma 150-600c (very popular) then yeah, a 1.4x TC is undesirable. That's a combination of poorer optical quality and poorer mating of the 2 components (I'm ignoring f stop and concentrating solely on non ISO related noise issues).

[@SLSaini-fs8nt]

Very valuable tips shared, thank uou

[@FreeRoamingPhoto]

My pleasure!

[@garrydelday5816]

Great tips, especially the last “get out there and practice” I put up a bird box for the first time this year and we had Great Tits raise a clutch of 8. It was not only satisfying but brilliant practice for getting them in flight with differing light levels over the 3 weeks it took for them to fledge. All 8 managed to fledge which I witnessed and got some great shots of the parents bringing food. Win, win 😉📷🐥

[@FreeRoamingPhoto]

Fantastic! Way to take advantage of a great opportunity! They probably made you a much better photographer and you didn't even have to use any gas 😅

[@garrydelday5816]

@@FreeRoamingPhoto put the box up 15 feet from the living room window so didn’t have to leave the sofa let alone get in the car 😉 certainly has improved my photography and have already put what I have learned into practice out in the field 👍 highly recommend giving it a go

[@FreeRoamingPhoto]

Couldn't agree more! I put a few different ones out over the winter and had some great practice with some birds in the snow! Had a blast photographing all the migrants and residents.

[@peterk_hh]

Thanks for the tips! For me it is a problem to have very short exposure times, often there are only clouds and rare sunlight, with aperture of 6.7 the Iso must go to 3600 or higher what my camera don't like, especially if you are far away from a bird and have to crop much. Will practice some more, let's see what will come.

[@FreeRoamingPhoto]

That's definitely a trickier situation. With lots of clouds and little sun you'll have to push the ISO up. Keep practicing and you'll find that sweet spot!

[@davepastern]

if you are using an older DSLR, then perhaps the time to upgrade is at hand? I can easily shoot at and up to ISO12800 with my R3 as long as I ETTR. Sure, I do need to use some NR AI software in PP, but that's not a deal breaker and not an issue.

[@luzr6613]

Most importantly, congratulations on your birding - you have some lovely images that i enjoyed very much. Good fun, in' it? Lkd&Subd.

[@FreeRoamingPhoto]

Thank you! It's quite the addictive fun 😄

[@luzr6613]

@@FreeRoamingPhoto Hmmm... i'm not at that (addicted) point, yet - very much a part-timer when it comes to birds. I think that they're not just a different set of techniques, but a different and specific mind-set too. The tech is also a consideration, as is managing the trauma of having so many dud shots!

[@FreeRoamingPhoto]

@@luzr6613 Absolutely! The technology has made it much easier, but that certainly doesn't eliminate an excess of failed shots, unfortunately. Regardless, I certainly got bit by the birding bug pretty bad.

[@stephenbeatty139]

very interesting

[@FreeRoamingPhoto]

Thank you!

[@plantman6245]

Hi nice post. Am looking to get a used 500mm f4 for birding. G or D series?

[@FreeRoamingPhoto]

Thanks! In terms of the lens, I shoot Canon, so I'm not completely qualified to answer, however I am a bit familiar with their system. From what I understand G lenses are a bit newer and designed around DSLRs, whereas the D lenses have more manual control, such as an aperture ring, to have compatibility with older film cameras. You can probably save some money by going with a D lens, but the G will be better suited for a more modern camera.

[@flightographist]

@@FreeRoamingPhoto Go H friend, manual focus is fine for less time sensitive imaging; a D will lead to frustration but on a positive note it will give you lots of time to ponder.

[@FreeRoamingPhoto]

@@flightographist Great tip! Thanks for the clarification!

[@bamsemh1]

Imagine crop cameras, with extender 😬 but all those things kind of doesn't matter anymore, because of denoise apps 😬

[@FreeRoamingPhoto]

It is true that denoise apps do a great job, but it's always better to not rely on them. And yes, an extender on a crop sensor would be quite a compromise!

[@davepastern]

I used a 7DII with my 500f4 and 1.4x TC with any real issues, unless it was low light. The R7 outperforms the 7DII when it comes to high ISO performance, despite 12 more megapixels. Pretty much everyone I know, who shoots birds, uses NR software. Near 100% of the time.

[@davepastern]

1. Not true. I have my EF 1.4x III TC almost permanently attached to my EF 500f4 prime. You pays for what you gets. Buy cheaper consumer grade lens, and be prepared for it to be optically inferior, especially with a TC in place. I never use my 2x TC these days - the optical hit, even with a pro grade supe tele prime, is too much. 2. the higher you go with ISO the lower your IQ is also not true. ETTR and better cameras will give better results. This is also especially true with the quality software based NR AI options on the market today. Yes, I will state that higher ISOs do lead to DR suffering (although the degree depends upon the camera being used). Colour accuracy via colour shifts can be an issue too at higher ISOs. 3. Agreed on actions. Sadly, birds don't always comply. I take what nature gives me. Also agreed on plain sky backgrounds, but the same thing as with lack of action. And of course, the opposite - busy backgrounds. You take what nature gives you. If you are always waiting, you will likely never take any shots. 4. I disagree on the AF and BIFs. You want the best, fastest performing, most accurate AF options always. Irrespective of whether it is a small or larger bird in flight. This ties in with your next point regarding shutter speeds. For portraits where the bird is perched etc, my standard go to is 1/1000. For BIFs, minimum 1/2000, preferably 1/4000 and at f8. A lot of other birding photographers will scoff at this and say you don't need f8, I disagree. I spent near 3 months testing this with my R3 and 500f4 prime and found f8 consistently gave me sharper BIFs than f7.1 or lower. ymmv (it may be a result of the combination of camera and lens that I use and other combinations may offer different results. I can only comment on my own personal setup). 5. I completely agree with research and getting out there lots. Both will improve your birding photography.

[@allend6137]

Rule #1. You gotta know where da birds at!!! Everything else will fall in place 🤣🤣🤣

[@FreeRoamingPhoto]

Can't believe I left that one off! 😅

[@davepastern]

not only the location, but time too. We had sightings of Swift parrots quite close to where I live (30 minute drive). After 5 visits, never saw them. Not once. They are critically endangered birds with less than 500 in the wild. It is likely that I was visiting at the wrong time of day (but right location). ebird and Facebook groups are very helpful with location suggestions.

[@colintraveller]

You must be feeling the cold to be wearimg a hat indoors . Or is it an American thing ??

[@FreeRoamingPhoto]

It was still a little chilly outside and I didn't bother to take it off 😅

[@colintraveller]

@@FreeRoamingPhoto Next you'll be wearing shorts out n about known full well it's pishing doon .

[@FreeRoamingPhoto]

@@colintraveller I've been known to do worse!