Master BIRDS in FLIGHT Photography! SETTINGS for SUCCESS! Image Stabilisation ON or OFF?

[@garyholmes8515]

Just new to it all. Pelicans are big beautiful and slow.

[@jan_wegener]

Yes, they can be great subjects to learn the techniques

[@GlennBartley]

Definitely good ones to practice on!

[@TrailOption--DCraig]

Thanks guys, great tips as always. Common nighthawk. Great Basin Desert, Nevada.

[@jan_wegener]

Our pleasure!

[@Duade]

Another great episode, I leave the IS on as I would always forget to turn it on if it was off. I remember using the focus limiter for the first time years ago and I forgot to switch it back. Next session with waders I thought my camera/lens was broken as it wouldn't focus :-) Cheers, Duade

[@GlennBartley]

Cheers Duade. Thanks so much for watching.

[@jan_wegener]

Yes, that’s always the danger of changing things you normally don’t touch. Thanks mate

[@markrigg6623]

When that happens it makes one's mood more unstable......

[@BIGNatureBoy]

Watch your channel as well Duade, keep up the good work. Been there done that with my focus limiter too!

[@Duade]

@@BIGNatureBoy Thanks Bruce, yes, did it a few times :-)

[@deanroslynmengel5575]

Favorite Bird - Rainbow Lorikeet in 1 Smith Lane, Toowoomba 4350 Australia

[@GlennBartley]

That is a real beauty!

[@jan_wegener]

awesome birds, got some here as well!

[@foto-dk]

Hi Jan and Glenn. One of your best sessions ever. My longest lens is the RF 100-500 mm, but It's so useful to listen closely to your advices. Good points concerning keeping IS on and settings of focusing. Wonderful shots of these beautiful swallows! Regarding the book I unfortunately live in Denmark 🙃, but to answer your question, I don't have any favourite bird to photograp. I enjoy sparrows as well as birds of prey. They call for different techniques. Thanks for your chat and advices. Regards from Jan, DK

[@GlennBartley]

Cheers! Thanks for watching.

[@jan_wegener]

Thank you! Glad you're enjoying the show

[@antonioantonucci45]

Wonderful wonderful video

[@jan_wegener]

Thank you! Cheers!

[@tim1398]

A couple of points on IS: - If you are using a red-dot site turn IS off or the bore-sight vs sensor alignment can skew by a large fraction of the frame when panning - something like 1/4 to 1/3 on my G9. - When panning rapidly, the IS can't possibly help in the direction you are panning, but it can hit the end stop and keep trying to reset unless the camera is smart enough to turn it off automatically. My G9 induced small "microblurs" if I left it on

[@axelhildebrandt]

Great advice and nothing to add. Here in the Northeast of the U.S. I have a lot of fun with Terns in the summer but also like photographing other shorebirds, sea ducks and raptors in flight. As for IS, if the shutter speed is very high, I sometimes turn it off for BIF, but leave it on most of the time. I don't use a tripod for flying birds, I would lose the flexibility to make quick changes if necessary.

[@GlennBartley]

Cheers Axel!

[@jan_wegener]

Thanks for sharing! :)

[@godfreytanner1557]

Eastern Osprey, Such majestic and finely tuned killing machines .Perth ,Western Australia

[@jan_wegener]

Great birds for sure

[@godfreytanner1557]

@@jan_wegener Really enjoy your videos, I'd be lost without them, cameras are so complex these days!

[@jan_wegener]

@@godfreytanner1557 Great to hear and happy I can help

[@GlennBartley]

One more for team Osprey!

[@przybylskipawel]

You NAILED IT, Glen! Like with NIN nailed! Jaw-dropping!

[@shaunafletcher1210]

I enjoy photographing most birds, but primarily birds of prey. Southern Alberta, Canada.

[@GlennBartley]

Awesome Shauna!

[@jan_wegener]

Nice!

[@nancyfischer4399]

Love this video! Took me forever to even realize I needed 1/2000 sec. for BIF, and you guys are blowing that out of the water. However, I should note that most of the birds in Florida are bigger, and so much slower than those you're tracking. Thanks for always putting out great, interesting, and informative shows - even 3 years ago.

[@JerrinJoshua18]

IS always on 😎🔥

[@jan_wegener]

same :)

[@MikeKatona]

Very good gentlemen. My favorites are Cedar Waxwings and Northern Harriers. I live in Oregon.

[@GlennBartley]

Was just watching some waxwings this afternoon. Beauties!

[@jan_wegener]

Thanks for sharing, much appreciated

[@chrislake8879]

Excellent tutelage on this most difficult photography challenge. My quick tip, choose large raptors gliding, or big water birds flying sluggishly in a straight line. If you must go for something smaller, a Nankeen Kestrel hovering is a good bet. I live on Wurrundjeri and Boonwurrung lands of the Kulin Nation and my favourite bird to photograph is the little jewel, the pardelote.

[@jan_wegener]

Yes, slower birds help creating the necessary skills for sure

[@GlennBartley]

Great birds to start on for sure. And gulls!

[@johnmckay428]

soooooo useful...thanks

[@jan_wegener]

Glad it was helpful!

[@mycompasstv]

My favorite bird to photograph is the Belted Kingfisher. I live in Toronto. Thanks for a great upload gentlemen!

[@GlennBartley]

Cheers!

[@jan_wegener]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@titosirj6262]

The book of your guest, All The Birds of the World, is that the Philippine Eagle on the cover?

[@jan_wegener]

Pretty sure it is.

[@garyjeffers8299]

Great tips once again. I always have IS on as it's easier to track the birds. I shoot with an Olympus EM1-X and it has an in camera AF limiter that you can set to whatever you wish, which is normally 20-80 metres for BIF. Tracking birds is the hardest part IMHO, so I've just got an Olympus dot sight to try out. I live in Maroochydore, QLD, Australia and my favourite bird to photograph would be the Forest Kingfisher in flight. They're a real challenge to get.

[@jan_wegener]

Thanks for sharing, I find it easier to track with IS as well. Forest KFs are awesome!

[@GlennBartley]

Olympus definitely has some cool features!

[@lorraineanderson149]

I live in Washington. The great northwest has so many birds to choose from because of the large migrations going South to North and back. I love them all. But, I would say my local bird favorites would be the Eagle and Ospreys. I'm still new, and just started photographing birds in flight. I keep IS on my one and only 600 Lens. Never saw any problems that would bring me to turn it off. Swallows are on my list to try and photograph. I've seen 4 types of swallows here this summer. You have got me hyped now on swallows!! I have learned so much from Jan's videos and I have shared them with my friends. Sorry Glenn, I've been watching Jan for about a year and half and I haven't seen you before. But, I will definitely check your videos out now! This was an excellent tutorial from both of you. Thanks for setting up the Time stamps so I could go back to certain sections and watch them again and again!

[@GlennBartley]

Thanks so much for watching and taking the time to comment.

[@jan_wegener]

Everyone loves an Osprey :) Glad you like our content :)

[@hauke3644]

Thanks, very interesting and nicely done, especially the virtual dual desk. With my Olympus camera I don’t use the highest framerates, because that just shuffles way too many files to the SD card. For me, 20 or sometimes 30 fps seems to be enough, even for starting song birds. By the way, Olympus‘ pre-buffering function (ProCapture) is very handy to not miss the right moment. Maybe Canon‘s or Sony‘s recent models have something similar, I don’t know.

[@jan_wegener]

They don't have it, but it would be a great addition!

[@ikoknyphausen198]

@@jan_wegener I also shoot an Olympus OMD MK3 in addition to the Canon R6, and one of the most valuable features is the focus limiting at the distant end. You can set the camera to only focus between 100 and 300 feet. That's on top of the usual lens focus limiting switches. It helps greatly with avoiding background focusing while a bird flies through your frame.

[@d1truo]

@@ikoknyphausen198 That's not on top, the limitter only works when the lens is not limitted from the switches. It's one way, or the other, but not both.

[@pakshiabhayaranya]

superb discussion.. continue these discussions

[@jan_wegener]

that's the plan, thank you!

[@sandrawoods915]

This is one of the best explanations of this topic that I have ever seen. Thank you. Also, it’s nice that you represent both hemispheres. (I am looking at Victoria from across the Strait - in Port Angeles.). Thanks again for the great content.

[@GlennBartley]

You are welcome Sandra!

[@jan_wegener]

Great to hear that Sandra

[@rowind151]

One of the best informative blogs on flight Photography I've seen.

[@GlennBartley]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@jan_wegener]

Thank you! Glad you liked it

[@JohnDrummondPhoto]

My question: which IS mode for BIF? Many telephoto lenses now have Mode 1 (all directions), Mode 2 (Y axis only), and Mode 3 (IS during exposure only). Common advice is to use Mode 2, but if the bird is approaching you or flying overhead from in front, I'm not sure it will work well. Another observation: you guys both shoot with R5s. 45 MP leaves lots of crop room for distant flying birds. That swallow photo looks like it was cropped to about 10 MP and it still retains lots of detail. If you're starting with only 20-24 MP you need to get a lot closer, or use a longer lens, or both to achieve similar results. I live in New York City and my favorite birds are yellow warblers and any kind of raptor. Thanks.

[@jan_wegener]

I always use Mode 1. Especially when you are handholding you'd still have a lot of vertical movement, too. And even on a tripod, birds still go up and down. I envision mode 2 to be more for something like cars driving past you with the same speed and distance all the time.

[@GlennBartley]

I use mode 1 all the time. Definitely a high megapixel full frame body was ideal for this shoot!

[@jan_wegener]

Yes, hard to beat the higher mpix for this kind of stuff

[@WernerBirdNature]

@@jan_wegener Thanks, I had the very same question. I also keep IS always on, and always on mode 1. But I kept this mode basically due to lack of experimenting. Nice to learn I should rather focus on other tricks I can pick up from your videos ! My favorite bird would be the red wing (plus the jays and great spotted woodpeckers who both frequent my garden). Sadly I live somewhere where an R5 costs about 1000 Euros more than the places where you're able to win a book with a picture made by Glenn on the cover :-P

[@jan_wegener]

@@WernerBirdNature haha! :D

[@kbhutia8466]

Very Many thanx for the wonderful Tips. .....Warm greetings from India...

[@jan_wegener]

Glad you liked them :)

[@JennaCee]

Alot of great information - thank you. Fav bird to photograph - The Cardinal in Vestal NY

[@jan_wegener]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@notyetdeadadventures]

Fanrastic episode...you nailed it man c

[@GlennBartley]

Cheers!

[@jan_wegener]

Thanks!

[@philipmarazzi]

Very good as ever guys, keep it up!

[@jan_wegener]

Thank you! Will do!

[@garybrown9719]

Bird Track is for beginners thats why I use it. You are a rock star in the world photography My camera has a huge buffer

[@dougoh6749]

Lots of useful, practical tips and techniques. Thanks guys.

[@jan_wegener]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@johnbyrne444]

Great video, guys. Recently discovered the Australasian Darter at a local lake. Beautiful bird. Berwick, Victoria, Australia.

[@jan_wegener]

Ha, I have photographed them in Berwick before myself :)

[@johnbyrne444]

@@jan_wegener Berwick Springs Lake

[@jan_wegener]

@@johnbyrne444 exactly

[@GlennBartley]

Cheers John!

[@8100meb1]

Very informative information

[@jan_wegener]

Glad you think so!

[@GlennBartley]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@daztography1]

Great tips guys, I love taking photos of small birds, swallows and robins..i live in qld, australia.

[@jan_wegener]

Awesome! Thanks for sharing

[@MediterraneanAesthetics]

Hey Jan , at 3:34 what is the " n " in " 1D Mark IIn " supposed to mean?

[@jan_wegener]

That's the name of the camera

[@MediterraneanAesthetics]

@@jan_wegener Indeed the name is " canon 1d mk ii " but why is there an n

[@jan_wegener]

@@MediterraneanAesthetics The name is "Canon 1D Mark IIn" , there's also a Canon 1D Mark II, but it's a different model

[@MediterraneanAesthetics]

@@jan_wegener I see , very interesting . Thank you very much

[@debrapuckett9126]

Another incredible informational video. Yes, you both nailed it!!!

[@jan_wegener]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@kevins8575]

Leave IS on - always. My favorite bird is the Red Billed Tropicbird, found along the east coast of Oahu, Hawaii, USA

[@GlennBartley]

Ya those guys are stunners! I photographed them on Tobago many years ago :-)

[@jan_wegener]

Nice! Thanks for sharing

[@kyleshay2677]

Great episode guys! I live in Nova Scotia Canada. My Fav bird to photograph would be Canada Warbler or Kingfisher!

[@GlennBartley]

Good pick. I love Canada Warblers!

[@jan_wegener]

Those are nice birds for sure

[@purtion851]

Fabulous, i just purchased the canon r5 and really appreciate the info on set up for taking photos of birds in flight...thankyou so much, i have learned a lot just watching and i have loved to take photos of birds. I live in Calgary, Alberta, Canada and i love going to the local park, photgraph ducks, seagulls, chickadees, and squirrels...and everything else. Most fav...chickadees! Thankyou so much for posting this utube...I very much appreciate all the tips you have given and using the R5 focusing system. Thankyou!!

[@robtiller8687]

Thanks for the tips and lovely shots. I live in Raleigh NC, and my favorite flying birds around here are bald eagles and great blue herons,. To the east, we get snow geese, tundra swans, and a variety of ducks.

[@Duclosxrp]

Great! video again....some great tips ill bring in the field....Thanks...

[@GlennBartley]

Cheers Rene!

[@jan_wegener]

Great to hear!

[@aglogower]

Thanks for all the great info. Love photographing the Redish Egrets! The are so animated when they hunt for fish in the shallow waters. Florida here.

[@jan_wegener]

Yes! They're amazing when they fish!

[@GlennBartley]

Good pick!

[@sparkysteele]

What an amazing show

[@jan_wegener]

Thank you!

[@GlennBartley]

Cheers!

[@DeeDeeDIY]

Glen nailed it. Beautiful. Nice video, thanks.

[@jan_wegener]

Glad you enjoyed it

[@kennethlui2268]

Great video. I always leave IS on. But if I need to do long exposure like several seconds, I will turn off IS. I live in California, USA. I like flight shots of male hummingbird.

[@GlennBartley]

That's a great point about long exposures. A rare scenario for birds. But yes you would definitely want it off for those!

[@kennethlui2268]

@@GlennBartley I do long exposure for landscape only.

[@jan_wegener]

Yes, for long exposure on a tripod it needs to be off

[@steff6816]

Not mentioned in the video, so which metering mode do you prefer for this type of photography. Great images must be great to have that much light available something we rarely get in the UK.

[@jan_wegener]

Full manual is really the only good option for BIF

[@heatherhudson8887]

Thanks for a great show. I love Mountain Blue Birds Osprey and a soft spot for female mallards. I leave my IS on. Still a beginner but love learning. Calgary Alberta Canada.

[@GlennBartley]

Thanks Heather!

[@jan_wegener]

Our pleasure!

[@gavinedmondstone316]

Lot's of good advice here! I never turn my IS off - Olympus user.

[@jan_wegener]

Glad you liked it!

[@peterkoh5344]

I am living in Auckland, New Zealand. I have been not using my film camera for not less than 20 years, because of the increasing photographers using digital camera and photoshop because of this reasons i give up my hobby, until I have watching your episode it renewed my interest. In the meantime I have preparing to buy a digital camera. In my country we have a lot of species birds and they are very friendly to people.

[@jan_wegener]

Great to hear :)

[@lisabirdluvr9742]

Thanks So much for all the wonderful tips and information... It was an awesome video!

[@0501tamglen]

I’m enjoying your videos. I will definitely look at the Case setting adjustments, thank you. I am near the coast in Maine.

[@clementfrancis208]

Man both the geniuses together... awesome to watch this from India... Glenn and Jan we love you guys here and are big fans of your photography..

[@jan_wegener]

Thanks man!

[@AtaBoraBasar]

Hey dude, i enjoy watching your videos while sipping my coffee and taking notes. Thanks.

[@jan_wegener]

Glad you like them!

[@GlennBartley]

Coffee and The Bird Photography Show = A Good Combo!

[@rmkussow]

Great tips on importance of prefocusing and use of image stabilization at high shutter speeds

[@GlennBartley]

Glad you enjoyed the episode!

[@jan_wegener]

Thank you 😊

[@gulmohar1000]

Awesome episode... I always leave IS on for the second reason that Jan mentioned, I often forget to turn it on again!

[@GlennBartley]

That is indeed logical!

[@jan_wegener]

hehe! Better safe than sorry :D

[@MrPhillipleahy]

I always leave IS on. Never had any problems and I asked the Reps from Olympus this question and their answer is the same as mine. My favourite bird is the Rainbow Lorikeet. They are readily accessible along the Yarra River near my home in Kew in Melbourne's inner east.

[@jan_wegener]

Yes, I got some in my tiny yard as well, awesome birds!

[@GlennBartley]

Good to hear!

[@toddwynia7491]

Some really good tips and techniques. Thanks!

[@MckayGeoff]

Excellent video, thanks for sharing your tips!

[@jan_wegener]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@brucehergert804]

My longest lens is a 70-200 zoom, but that doesn't stop me from getting some really nice shots. My favorite bird to photograph is the Song Sparrow. I am able to call them into my back yard (which is really quite fun in itself). Then they come in really close to me for some beautiful poses. I live in Oregon, USA.

[@jan_wegener]

That's awesome and a great example that you don't need a crazy lens when using the right techniques

[@thethreeislands]

Excellent, never had anyone mention about pumping the back button focus until now

[@jan_wegener]

You missed out then :D Thanks!

[@lindabates7662]

Great video. Lots of really useful information that will work in the field.

[@jan_wegener]

Glad it was helpful!

[@altonsullivent]

Thanks for the great information and the nice shots you both shared.

[@jan_wegener]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@andrewkeir2282]

Oh... and my budget setup is a Canon90D coupled with Sigma 150-600C. I have recently got a good Benro tripod and Benro gimbal head but have yet to use them. I have an older Canon 1.4 extender, but have yet to really use it.

[@jan_wegener]

It's definitely more challenging with that set up to get swallows in full flight, but not impossible, especially on very windy days

[@LLClimited]

Great episode. My favorite bird to photograph is the Eastern Bluebird. I live in Georgia, USA.

[@GlennBartley]

A beauty. I have yet to get great shots of them.

[@jan_wegener]

Thanks! That’s such a cool little bird

[@sajis79]

Thankyou both. This is one of the best tutorial on this subject.

[@jan_wegener]

Glad it was helpful!

[@christianwetzel1862]

Just this week I tried to photograph barn swallows and house martins in flight with IS off (R5 with EF 100-400 mk II, 20fps, >= 1/3200s, AF case set to maximum stickiness and acceleration). It was definitely ruining the rate of sharp shots. You could already see in the viewfinder the AF constantly losing focus every few frames during panning, whereas with IS on it steadily followed the bird once found in the frame. Just as Jan said, also the AF system benefits from a stabilized scene. So for me that question is answered.

[@jan_wegener]

Thanks for sharing that in the field observation! Makes total sense when you think about it.

[@GlennBartley]

Seems like the consensus is IS on all the time :-)

[@timchickering3309]

Hi Jan, it's nice to find you on KZbin I subscribed

[@efrainsueldo]

My favorite bird the American bald Eagle. Any comments of the use of DOT for difficult birds and the use of back AF. I agree with you about the IS I left always on. Eau Claire WI

[@jan_wegener]

Both Glenn and I use back button focus. It can definitely help for BIF

[@jeffolson4731]

Great advice on taking bird pictures. I am very new to it and and it very fun. My favorite bird to photograph is the Belted Kingfisher. I live in Milton, Washington, USA.

[@GlennBartley]

The ol' Kingfisher. Always challenge!

[@jan_wegener]

That’s nice birds! Glad we could help you with the video

[@fredland1002]

Hey Guys, If you ever find yourself in Texas, look me up and I'll show you some of my favorite spots to photograph birds. My favorite bird to photograph is Wood Duck as it has a lot of those iridescent reflective colors.

[@GlennBartley]

Yes Wood Ducks are real stunners. Thanks for the offer!

[@jan_wegener]

Thanks mate! I hope I can come back one day. I loved it!

[@vladimirsaveliev4374]

Great episode. My fav bird to photographe is great blue heron and i am from Toronto, Canada.

[@jan_wegener]

Thanks for watching 😀

[@robertberg3944]

Lot of good information! I live in Washington State and my favorite bird to photograph is the Pileated Woodpecker.

[@GlennBartley]

Nice. I love Pileated's too.

[@jan_wegener]

Thanks! That’s an awesome bird

[@jonogu2705]

I’m in Victoria, Australia. I quite enjoy photographing rainbow bee-eaters. They have beautiful colours and an impressive ability to dive and catch bees in mid air. Quite amazing to watch and always an enjoyable challenge to capture!

[@GlennBartley]

Ya those guys are stunners!!

[@jan_wegener]

Yep, bee-eaters are awesome!

[@dipingrewal44]

Favorite bird is sparrows, I live in Michigan thanks for great video.

[@jan_wegener]

Nice, thanks for watching

[@allenfutrelle9090]

As always a great video, greatly enjoyed. My favorite bird to photograph in coastal North Carolina has to be the Painted Bunting a truly beautiful bird. It looks like a artists palette of colors.

[@GlennBartley]

Ya that's a beauty for sure!

[@jan_wegener]

Yes, that's one awesome bird. I fell lucky I got some shots in texas many years ago

[@roypriest3768]

My favourite bird in flight is the Great Gray Owl, White Rock, B.C., Canada. Practice is mandatory, I shoot gulls and crows from my balcony to keep my skills up.

[@GlennBartley]

Good idea to keep the skills sharp!

[@jan_wegener]

Good practice will help in those critical situations

[@sabyasachibanerjee124]

Very insightful! That was a great presentation

[@jan_wegener]

Thank you!

[@peterADL]

Fantastic episode, a lot of useful tips. Thank you

[@jan_wegener]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@DrOdysseus89]

What a fantastic video. Thank you for having this conversation and handing out all of this advice!

[@GlennBartley]

You are welcome!

[@jan_wegener]

Our pleasure!

[@lkaufman719]

Excellent discussion. I leave the lens IS on at all times because I too sometimes forget to turn it back on--and I don't notice any problem with image quality. I very recently started photographing hummingbirds--talk about erratic flight! Thank goodness for bird AF. I'm not very good at birds in flight, but I like to practice on the ubiquitous Canada geese in my Maryland neighborhood.

[@jan_wegener]

Most hummingbird shots are from near feeders where they stay in one spot for a second or two :D

[@kennethkiss9462]

Great episode on flight photography. My favorite bird to photograph is the Great Horned Owl although I normal get him stationary and have got no good flight shots. I live in Dubuque, IA along the mighty Mississippi River.

[@GlennBartley]

Thanks for sharing Kenneth.

[@jan_wegener]

Glad you enjoyed it. That's a cool owl for sure

[@deanhohn777]

I shoot with the R5 with the RF100-500mm lens plus the RF1.4X extender. I leave stabilization on in Mode 1. My favourite birds to photograph are the Azure Kingfisher, Spotted Pardalote and any raptors.

[@jan_wegener]

Nice ones, thanks for sharing

[@GlennBartley]

Nice choices!

[@renesch438]

Hi guys, my favorite bird to capture in flight is the Osprey. Enjoying the R5 with the 800mm. So fun to shoot with. Thank you for all the tips. I’m in Tennessee. Hope to win a book.

[@GlennBartley]

Ospreys are definitely the fan favourite!

[@renesch438]

@@GlennBartley trying to make a good capture of a hummingbird, any tips?

[@jan_wegener]

Nice combo! Lots of love for Ospreys in the comments

[@RogerZoul]

Nice vid, thanks.

[@jan_wegener]

Glad you liked it!

[@GlennBartley]

Cheers!

[@dipaksuthar3762]

Really nice information Very practical advice Thanks 👍

[@jan_wegener]

Glad it was helpful!

[@paulgray2682]

Do you ever use flash with Beamer ?

[@jan_wegener]

We have a lot more in the past, not as much these days

[@josephinedeberardinis343]

From Australia. Loving bird photography. Learning too. Really interesting.

[@jan_wegener]

Awesome, thank you!

[@juleshorse9056]

This video is excellent. I like the emphasis on set up, technique skills training, and practice. The Swallow images are testament to this diligent approach. Good set of tips at the end. Highly recommended.

[@jan_wegener]

Thank you very much!

[@kennetht66]

love the show I have learned lots . I live in New Mexico when I can catch them it would be the sandhill crane thanks again!

[@geoffn8963]

Thanks for a great show. Right up my alley as I do a lot of BIF and swallow IF shooting in the Victoria BC area. I do agree with all the points Jan brought up about leaving IS/OSS/VR On. That said, over the past couple years I have started to leave mine OFF once at 1/2500 or faster. Especially for more erratic birds like our VG swallows. I certainly can't prove that it helps, but I just feel there is less micro blur in the catchlight with it OFF. Still, I shot with it On all the time with Canon DSLRs and Nikon DSLRs. And have shot with it ON on the R5, A9, A1 and still have success. So probably in the end it doesn't matter all that much which way one chooses. Question for Glenn....wondering if you are willing to share that VG swallow location you were at this spring? I've done most of my VG shots at the Swan Lake bridge "D" section. But that spot you showed in the video looked promising. I'm always looking for new locations and have only been in the Victoria area for 3 years. For the giveaway, I'm in North Saanich, BC, Canada. Hard to pick a favourite but these days I'd actually say Violet-green Swallows in flight are my favourite subject to photograph because of the challenge and the rewarding feeling when you get one banking in good light and the green/violet is on full display. 2nd place would have to go to Short-Eared Owls on the mainland in November.

[@jan_wegener]

Yes, it might be one of those "whichever settings makes you feel better" cases. Since there are so many factors that affect flight shots.

[@GlennBartley]

Thanks for the thoughts Geoff. That spot was Panama Flats.

[@geoffn8963]

@@GlennBartley Thanks for the reply. That is strange I didn’t recognize it. I shoot there a lot and have shot swallows there sometimes. Now I look back on the video and know exactly where you were standing. DOH.

[@barrytrudgian4514]

I am in Cornwall UK and enjoy the challenge of photographing Oystercatchers, balancing the white and black plumage as well as the sky or sea background. I am starting to get used to prefocussing a mirrorless camera and will try your AF suggestions. I have been turning IS off for BIF but will now try with it on. Thanks

[@jan_wegener]

Thanks for sharing Stanley, yes B/W can be challenging for exposure. Glad we could give you some new ideas to try

[@GlennBartley]

Thanks for watching Stanley!

[@davincifpv3983]

Another GREAT one!! Well done guys, keep on with the great work. Cheers from New Zealand and Kia Kaha

[@GlennBartley]

Cheers Andres!

[@jan_wegener]

Thanks Mate

[@JerrinJoshua18]

Love to take flying photograph of Indian Roller ❤️

[@jan_wegener]

nice!

[@JerrinJoshua18]

@@jan_wegener sir have you ever took photos of India roller ?

[@jan_wegener]

@@JerrinJoshua18 no, but I would love to visit India one day

[@hamptonblues]

I live in Poulsbo, Washington State, USA. Wow, 'Favorite Bird'? THAT's a moving target for sure, but at the moment it would be an Elegant Trogon. A beautiful and somewhat difficult bird for me to get a photograph of. It took a few years of going back to the same spot (a specific tree with berries on it that the bird was fond of) in Madera Canyon, Arizona. My favorite due to the effort it took over time for the most part. I enjoy both of your channels. Cheers, Wally...

[@GlennBartley]

Great persistence Wally!

[@jan_wegener]

That's a lot of dedication! Did you end up getting some nice shots?

[@hamptonblues]

I did get some nice shots Jan, thanks for asking. My favorite was inflight, with a berry in it’s beak and branches of the tree / bush above it. I was lucky… but prepared.

[@jan_wegener]

@@hamptonblues nice!

[@devswarnakar3740]

incredible informations thanks for sharing

[@jan_wegener]

Our pleasure!

[@herdingdog1]

It is a quandary as to whether to leave it on or off for me. I will leave it on if I am handholding a big lens and possibly turn it off if I am on a tripod. Does it really make a difference, I don’t know? Holding that long lens without IS on I can sure see the difference in the evf with some small erratic shaking. If nothing else the IS gives me a steadier image helping be more accurate with my focus. Owls high on my list to photograph. Washington State.

[@GlennBartley]

Hi Bonnie! Thanks for watching. With the new lenses and IS modes I see no reason to turn it off on a tripod.

[@jan_wegener]

Yes, because it’s smoother I leave IS on

[@montepaulson3131]

Great episode! I leave IS on always. I love shooting Osprey and bald Eagles from my boat but have been unsuccessful in a dive shot as of yet. I live in Alberta and spend allot of time in BC camping and fishing.

[@GlennBartley]

Awesome Monte!

[@jan_wegener]

I hope you will get the shot you're after soon! A diving Osprey is pretty fast!

[@thescouser8629]

Morning Guys and greetings from North East Scotland Have been shooting flying birds for many years and almost always have left the IS on. Reasonable success although difficult to give a percentage hit rate. Recently I have seen suggestions that the speed of the auto focusing system is faster without IS. Any thoughts?

[@jan_wegener]

I have not heard that before and I would suspect that that would only be the case (if at all) with cameras that have small batteries that cannot give full power to AF and IS, but that would be quite strange.

[@lucianparshall8063]

My favorite bird has to be the Many-colored Rush Tyrant - probably because I never could get a decent shot of it. Michigan

[@GlennBartley]

That would indeed be a rarity in Michigan :-)

[@jan_wegener]

such a cool bird!

[@DavidLWhitehurst]

Really good video. I’m probably late on the contest but I live in North America and my favorite little bird is the prothonotary warbler. Oh, IS on always.