FPS: Pro Secrets To Better Keepers And Sharper Shots!

Frame rate - it seems pretty simple, right? However, leveraging it the right way can unlock a flood of extra keepers - and even sharper photos! In this video, we'll tackle everything you see below and more!
What's the best frame rate for wildlife photography?
Is there a secret frame rate to help you capture more of those perfect moments?
Do you need fast FPS for static subjects? (Psst - the answer will surprise you!)
Can you use frame rate to get sharper images?
How do you handle sorting when shooting at a high frame rate?
Curious? Check out the video!
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[@merkin22]

As always, could listen to you talk photography endlessly. Good stuff, Steve. Cheers!

[@KurtisPape]

I recently got the Sony A1, started using it at 10 and 15fps thinking I will never use the max of 30fps, well it didn't take long and now I shoot everything at 30fps and I have no problems other than increasing the shutter count of my camera tremendously.

[@segercliffhanger]

I love a numeral approach to art from time to time. Great photography, like every other creative domain, simply shares statistics with every part of life. You can't have one without the other. Great subject for a good wildlife video and very nicely demonstrated.

[@nathanfrisby3133]

Another awesome video Steve! I use my Z5. & Z6ii in my photography. I’m lucky to have caught some good shots with both, even if the Z5 isn’t as fast. It’s a challenge sometimes successfully and others not. Guess this is what keeps us going back for more.

[@Marco_Wildlife]

How you manage to make FPS interesting is beyond me, chapeau!

[@MrTmiket0007]

Thanks so much for sharing another wonderful video like always and great tips 👍🤗

[@tc6912]

I like your sorting in camera technique. I have been using it for a while now. It uses some battery life, but it is a great way to spend downtime in the field, save card space, and reduce download time. It can also shed some light on your settings and technique while you still have the opportunity to change something. If there isn't something in the shot that grabs me, it won't interest others either and not worth the processing time. I go through pretty fast and grab the best shots. If I don't have what I wanted and can't get another opportunity, I go through again and compromise a bit before hitting the 'delete all' button.

[@billbarraclough9653]

You always talk complete sense, Steve. Thanks!

[@clarkmai4924]

Yes, I see in your Z8/Z9 setup guidebook what you think about frame rate 😊.

[@hbarwick1]

Great points Steve. I enjoy all your advice

[@speedways1]

I don’t do wildlife but in motorsports, I can absolutely confirm your point. I use Nikon Z9’s and does an amazing job. It does create a lot of images but I cull my images exactly as you suggest. Thanks for the great info.

[@BruceCampbell65]

Another good video; thanks for sharing your insights

[@MikeJamesMedia]

Always good advice, Steve. Thanks!

[@tenrec]

Great video, Steve. I want to mention that your example shots are head and shoulders above what I see from most other wildlife photographers!

[@backcountrygallery]

Thanks so much!

[@AndyMillerPhotoUK]

Steve -- great vid and advice as usual -- obviously picking higher frame rates when there is action or movement and not "just" a stationary subject. The FPS has to what is required to obtain the body position or event you want - for large slow moving birds or most mammals then a lower fps can be used when compared to fast moving small birds and mammals. So thanks for saying this. We know that birds and some animals have an inner eye lid and this can be ugly - hence why some portraits need high fps. AS you note all animals in the wild are constantly looking around they are rarely stationary - like your baby Cheetah you want to capture the image while the Cheetah is looking at you and that may be a fleeting moment and very hard to time with a single shot. Save space after the shoot while culling obvious misses/wrong positions. Training your eye is key - and Steve your eye is well trained. It takes practice. To obtain my shot of a kingfisher diving used by NPS and others when the bird's bill just pushed on the surface of the water I had to use 120 fps - 20, 30 and 60 did not get me the shot, but 120 fps did. The other reason for shooting 20+ FPS is when I may wish to convert a burst into a vid. I am primarily a stills shooter and simply do not consider exporting an image from even RAW from 4k 120fps video to deliver equal quality to 20 fps RAW stills.

[@markcasebeer8273]

It is another great video. I shoot with the Fuji H2s and shoot EL shutter @ 40fps. Combine this with it's pre-focus function and you can get photos that in the past were just lucky.

[@WendySparks-ct5uh]

superb as always

[@dickblystone4288]

Excellent advice as always, and definitely agree with your culling method!

[@tomsullivan2907]

Steve, I agree totally, got a great bird photo. A Pie-billed Gebe started to flap its wings and raised its head back and up. If I wasn't blasting away I would have missed the head up. Really cool photo and I have seen this before or after I got that photo.

[@MarkusGebhard]

Wow such stunning images!

[@backcountrygallery]

Many thanks!

[@chrishayes4785]

Great video as usual. I am clearly not using close to the max on my Z8. Culling was my big reason, now i dont have to. Many thanks Steve.

[@gaucphotography]

Totally agree… Also when using auto-capture on the Z9 20 fps is essential to get a better keeper.

[@ammadoux]

thanks so much Steve.

[@Justinhoou]

As usual, high quality video from you. 😀 Would you be doing a video on ECFS VS Mechanical VS Electronic shutters in the near future for wildlife photography? I had always been using ECFS and high shutter speed for shooting birds but was told that it may result in weird bokeh. Thanks.

[@cowboyyoga]

Thank you Steve ! Your videos are always very helpful. I have the Nikon Z7 ll and the Sony A7 lll and do not even know what the highest frame rate is? Time to do some homework! ))) Great video!

[@johnbutler8929]

Thanks Steve for the help, I'm interested in when you will update your books I have for the Zf, which I have on order

[@sebastienmeunier1643]

Great tips! I still have problems culling my thousands of photos when shooting 20-30 FPS though. At such high frame rates the differences between each shot are often very subtle and I can't really tell which ones have the absolute best animal poses or best sharpness or perfect focus using only a thumbnail.

[@shang-hsienyang1284]

I have bought a 32" screen just to tell the differences between the thumbnails

[@rayrozema5960]

Great advice

[@jaymc5011]

Love your videos ... would add, if your camera has pre-capture, do turn it on when taking these types of photos.

[@505CABRAL]

I agree with higher frame rates for static subjects. While taking full moon photos I caught the tail end of an airplane passing in front of the moon that I didn't know was there until I reviewed the photo. Another time a bird was in front of the moon which I could have blended to look like multiple birds. So many opportunities lost with single shot frame rates.

[@HR-wd6cw]

I've found that shooting in shorter controlled bursts, but using the highest quality image (lossless compressed for example on the Z8) works best, but I can still keep the frame rate at its highest (20 fps) and not really hit the buffer. I'm just a hobbyist so I would say that my hit rate is perhaps lower than that of someone more experienced but still I've found this works better than shooting a longer burst and hitting the buffer (depending on how my card slots are configured, which for sports, I tend to turn off backup mode and switch to overflow instead) which means it can usually shoot as fast as a Z9 until the CFE card fills up. And using a fast card, I've found that I've been able to shoot a full 20 fps to a CFE card and not really ever hit the buffer (at least that I've found yet) but i also do shorter burst times too, usually no more than say 5 seconds or more at a time. I do have to say that the Pre-release capture on the Z8 and Z9 is very helpful (too bad it can't be done with RAW files though, yet, at least. Still only a JPEG only feature but better than nothing or no shot). Your last part about bursts for slower moving subjects and/or lowlight I think is where people tend to nitpick and really this depends. I sometimes use this method for just low-light situations, even if it's not a moving subject. but if I'm at say 1/10 or 1/5 of a second, I might pop off 3 shots just to make sure the middle one or the last one is sharp, as the first shot probably won't be. The second part of this is how many you show people. If you had to shoot 5 frames to get a sharp shot, that' sfine, but don't make the mistake of showing all 5 or many of the same frames. Show just one because you only need ONE. This is where people get in trouble with the "spray and pray" approach. It's obviously something people should avoid if possible, but there are some instances where it's acceptable such as really slow shutter speeds in low light or fast action subjects. I mean if you think about it, shooting in burst mode for a moving subject is basically the same thing and you really are hoping to get that one perfect shot (ie. "pray"). Of course there is timed shooting and technique with this, and shooting off 200 frames hoping to get something, so there is a slight difference in how you go about doing it, but it's a similar concept either way, but again, the mistake I see the most is people post a several frames from a sequence giving the impression that they did the spray approach.

[@heelfan78]

Great video Steve. I have often held back on extended bursts because I dread the thought of extensive culling. But you've convinced me to re-examine my shooting process. On the other hand, can you give me your advice? Based on your pictures, I'm seeing a different ISO in everyone of them. Are you using auto ISO which adjusts based on shutter speed settings? I"ve kept your earlier video about which shutter speeds to use on different sizes of birds, so I'm guessing you set your shutter speed and let the camera adjust the aperture and the ISO. Your help here? But thanks so much for this very helpful video!!!!!

[@suzannegmirek1520]

Excellent video from you, as always! I like to photo my backyard song birds and 20 fps has become too slow. Using Pre-capture with 120 fps and am thrilled with what I can capture. Unfortunately, only 11 meg files. Still I've tried with 20fps (therefore no pre-capture) and it's next to impossible to guess when the bird is going to fly. I use FastRawViewer to cull and it has saved me much time. Thanks again, for a wonderful video. Maybe some day I'll go out and photo "slower" birds and be able to use the 20fps :-)

[@framsethna9423]

Steve, thank you so much for this video. I have a D750 and I thought I was definitely not doing something correct. So many my photos wouldn’t end up with what I saw through the viewfinder; however, after watching this video, I realized that there are a few things going on. Yes, my camera doesn’t have a high frame rate per seconds; nonetheless, my basic technique and thoughts are confirmed with this video. I don’t have the money to upgrade to the Z8 or Z9 currently. Nevertheless, I can always dream.😢

[@JRodPhotoArt]

Good stuff Steve, Do you also use the pre-release feature on the Nikon ?

[@backcountrygallery]

I don't because it's JPEG only. If it were RAW, I'd probably use it as needed.

[@davetv13]

On additional trick I always use when shooting zoo photography is when taking a burst of images always take 2 to 3 more than when you want to stop just to make sure that last frame (you want or need) is tack sharp. I have times when I stop and the last frame I pulled the camera away and can't use that last frame I wanted.

[@rcgrant9310]

Steve, Thank you taking the time & effort to assist those of us into wildlife photography. Greatly Appreciated! What brand & size CFexpress Type B Cards do you use for your still photography and do you use a different size card for your video work? THANK YOU

[@backcountrygallery]

We use the Delkin Black. I have some 128s and a couple 256s. We use them for stills and video.

[@rcgrant9310]

THANK YOU!!@@backcountrygallery

[@brianlemke6017]

Nikon + OM1 here. I run my Z8 at top speed raw but the OM1 goes up to 50 fps raw. In pro-capture I use 50 but in normal bird and wildlife shooting I throttle back to 20 fps. I agree with everything you say, I am missing a few great shots. But I just can’t stand culling 2000 shots from a morning shoot; when I see the number on the card it gives me a sinking feeling. As you say, I shoot short bursts, usually 0.5-1s on the shutter. Compared to my D850, great camera that only shoots 8 fps, yes, I get more keepers and great shots. But I also got great shots at 8 fps. And many of my “wow, that’s incredible” shots are with pro-capture/pre-capture, the ability to count backwards from a burst. I’ll live with the losses. Schrodingers photography.

[@washingtonradio]

Good advice, one question would you put a limit on the burst in camera, say 50 or 100 as the maximum for a burst?

[@simonbooker]

Hi Steve - Super video and I agree 5000% the ONLY downside to high speeds ( in my case Z9 ) is culling. The challenge is that for low light burst and even action burtst where you might get 10-15 that look similarly good you still need to go and inspect them to see if there is ONE "sharpie" in a sequence & and that's where my time falls down the plughole 🥴 I use Lightroom CC and I have asked Adobe to use their AI geniuses to develop "AutoCrop images" and "Find sharp eye" utilities ( they really ought to be able to do that ), then we could dive in and see the potential keepers faster and perhaps the "sharpies". Am I missing anything ? What do you think ? It would be Wildlifers heaven to get home with 2000 images , AutoCull to 25 and be done ! 🙏

[@backcountrygallery]

One "trick" is getting to know what maximum sharpness looks like with your lenses. I know it when I see it with mine and once I see it, I stop looking. It takes some practice with each lens until you start to see it, but once you do, you can stop looking once you find one that comes in at maximum sharpness.

[@jackchohawno]

Thanks for the insight into fps! Your channel is my go to place for tips. I got a Sony A1 today and I’ve always used uncompressed raw. But to get 30fps I have to shoot compressed raw apparently. Would you recommend shooting in compressed raw as fine?

[@backcountrygallery]

I haven't really noticed any difference between normal and compressed RAW with the Sony cameras. However, I also tend to only shoot comprised raw in easier situations where I know I won't push the file too hard. I think 30 FPS is handy for BIF work or even faster mammal work.

[@jackchohawno]

Thanks for the reply Steve. Massive help. Keep up the great work you do!

[@wismokey]

You mention rolling shutter in mirrorless cameras. I get a rolling shutter effect when shooting in Silent Shutter mode with my Nikon D850 in mode 1.

[@brucephilipps6105]

Steve, great advice! Do you do your culling in Lightroom or other software like photo mechanic?

[@backcountrygallery]

I use Lightroom - I sometimes can't wait to process an image as I sort, so that allows me to do it.

[@dr.dilipdesarker8118]

One thing I wonder under low light without tripod handheld 20fps give us less blurry image under low iso? Please explain

[@Mr1Spring]

My lightroom is getting slow. I use FastStone image viewer for culling

[@wellingtoncrescent2480]

I am a big fan and also enjoy your books, which I refer to often. But I am curious about how you reconcile your claim to need maximum frame rates (to avoid missing shots) with culling those shots by scanning through the thumbnails. Perhaps my aging eyes are less able, but I miss a lot of nuance if I only look at thumbnails, which I fear would also lead to missing the "best" shots. Although I can shoot at up to 30 fps, I rarely exceed 7-15 fps because I don't like sorting in post. Don't you worry about missing out by culling only the thumbnails? Lovely images, thanks for sharing.

[@backcountrygallery]

Thanks for the kind words :) I have a 27" monitor and I enlarge the thumbnails quite a bit :) Works well most of the time. I was able to use that method for many of the shots shown in this video. You can also use Loupe View (the view where the image is full size) and use the arrow keys to go one by one. Often, I'll scan through the thumbnails and if I get to a section with several that are close, I'll look at them larger and one by one (zooming in to check sharpness) to pick the perfect moment. The key is to skip the more mundane ones you know you won't use and only focus on the special moments that you do want to use.

[@Jonathantuba]

I am not so sure about deleting the pictures not selected. Sometimes gems are missed scanning the thumbnails, and better to save those not edited to an external drive to possibly check later - particularly on a ‘once in a lifetime’ trip. May never use, but I would rather spend money on external drives than worry I have deleted a good shot.

[@backcountrygallery]

FWIW, I usually don't delete either, although I think the majority do. I figure storage is cheap and I sometimes need one of my "not so great" shots for an example in a tutorial. Still, I think most people like to get rid of their extras, but to each their own :)

[@tw9535]

I did think about this at one time as well but then figured that without a projected lifespan of 1,000 years the chances of me ever ACTUALLY going back to look through tens of thousands of burst pictures are much less than the chances of an untimely heart attack. And whoever I leave the hard drives to will not be taking the time to look at them either. That much I know for a fact. ...... they've already told me.

[@DeanJohnson67]

would be interesting to have the cameras TAG images that are shot in bursts so that it's easier to group them together...Sure you can just look at timestamps but it would be could to have the filename indicate some burst counter value as part of the name ? :) --- p.s. Great Tips! I just need to get better at HOLDING the button down for bird in flight shots vs burst modes for certain scenarios like an Osprey diving in/out of the water for a fish ...

[@backcountrygallery]

The Z8/9 can separate out bursts (and allows you to delete full bursts if you like), but I think the tagging idea is a good one for after-the-fact and back home at the computer.

[@StevenDavisPhoto]

Only downside of shooting at 20 fps is having to filter through so many shots later, but I'd rather get the money shot. I shoot in bursts instead of machine gunning, like you said.

[@ErnieSesameStreet]

May I ask where do you bought the glass with the trees design

[@backcountrygallery]

We got them from the Corelle outlet I think.

[@joepalmer75]

Would you shoot the Z9 at 120fps dropping it to 11MP. Z8 would use up cards fast I would think? btw...doing Pangolin photo safari end of Nov so this video offers new thoughts...never would have done long bursts on an elephant...lol

[@backcountrygallery]

Nope, simply because I can't shoot it in RAW.

[@longrider9551]

For most birds I shoot my A9 at 10fps, when I try the smaller swallow type birds who dart around I bump it up. I just found with larger slower birds like eagles I had too many duplicates at 20fps

[@backcountrygallery]

When a bird is gliding, that's often the case. However, I was out this morning with wading bird (flight) and getting them as they were coming and going - even at 20 FPS, I was wishing for a few in-between shots upon review. In addition, unless the background is the sky, I find that the faster frame rate often gives me more variety against a wider range of background options. Just a thought :)

[@pattymattes7124]

This may be a dumb question but aren't the Z9 and the Z8's electronic shutter only? What about rolling shutter problems with them if there are any?

[@uaebifvideo5472]

None existing!!

[@sh1904]

Absolutely no rolling shutter thanks to the stacked sensor!

[@anaphylaxis2548]

No rolling shutter on the Z9!

[@pattymattes7124]

@@sh1904 What about the Z8?

[@pattymattes7124]

@@anaphylaxis2548 what about the Z8?

[@thomaschamberlin2485]

You make the editing sound easy, but my reality is I always have how much of pain it is going to be in the back of my mind and it keeps my finger pretty quiet. How times have changed. We used to roll our eyes at the guy who was spraying and praying.

[@backcountrygallery]

It's not really sparring and praying though - remember, I'm talking about controlled bursts. Just this morning I was shooting BIF and I'd get the bird in the frame and shoot ONLY when I saw a background I liked, simply following and tracking otherwise. Spray and pray would be just shooting everything, IMO :)

[@Skye_the_toller]

I spent hundred of hours trying to shoot hummingbirds... with my Z9 and fast frames... I now fell like it is cheating ... in few hours, I have had a lot of keepers!!! ;)

[@marcusslade9804]

Your comments about culling are particularly poignant and the fact that I’m kind of practicing what you're recommending is encouraging. Having come back from a recent trip with 30,000 frames, there are quite a few bursts with "more than acceptable quality images” but within them one or two that are just that much better…and I’m only shooting with a slavishly slow D6 🤣. Thanks.

[@simonbooker]

Yes - same issue , see my comment

[@brucesummers7448]

There is also a point where it is better to shoot video at 30 fps or 60 fps instead of stills at 20 fps.

[@jerrybarton4528]

Please watch the dancing hands.....

[@seantomlinson3320]

Amused by the new video clips dropped in.

[@backcountrygallery]

I try :)