My best bird photography techniques // Small birds in flight with nikon Z9

Another day in my cabin doing some bird photography.
A pied flycatcher had decided to nest in a box just 100 meters from my cabin. I have never photograph this cool bird before. So it was time to use my photo blind from Tragopan. So I could come close without disturbing the bird. In the video I use my best bird photography technique to capture some action shots and birds in flight.
Camera equipment I use in the video:
Nikon Z9
Nikon Z6 II
Nikon 500mm f4 FL VR
This channel is sponsored by Stavanger foto and Nikon.
www.stavangerf...​
This is a fantastic software I use to remove noise and sharpen my images.
If you want to buy them, you can get 15% off, using coupon code: trond15
Topaz Denoise: www.topazlabs....
Topaz Sharpening Ai: www.topazlabs....

[@afinney88]

Those photos are breath-taking!

[@trondwestby5264]

Thank you so much Andy!

[@alessandrociceri331]

So cute little bird

[@27penmar]

looks like a dinner of champions. As always, a class video and enjoyed watching it.

[@trondwestby5264]

Thank you Mark for your kind comment!

[@juergenlange1129]

Perfect Video and Beautiful photos. TOP

[@trondwestby5264]

Thank you so much! Glad you liked it.

[@mikecrowley6485]

Beautiful photos Trond, Top Class. And a beautiful little bird Also

[@trondwestby5264]

Thanks a lot Mike !

[@craigmaisfield3247]

Brilliant. Awesome images. Can't wait for the arrival of my Z9.

[@trondwestby5264]

Thank you Craig! :) Hope you get it soon.

[@garywebster8355]

Fantastic as always 👏

[@trondwestby5264]

Thanks a lot Gary!

[@chrispitman1169]

Beautiful many thanks for a great video

[@trondwestby5264]

Thank you Chris!

[@dzlvlog19kviews5minuteago.9]

Love from 🇮🇳India (assam

[@trondwestby5264]

🙌

[@jenspeterkragh6155]

Smuk video og smukke billeder :-)

[@trondwestby5264]

Tusen takk Jens Peter! :)

[@alainalain3562]

j'adore vos vidéos merci pour ce partage

[@trondwestby5264]

Thank you! :)

[@littlemike50]

Lovely video and some great shots Trond, Great work and Realy Cool 😎...

[@torstenschmid7415]

Great 💪👏👏👏

[@trondwestby5264]

Thank you Torsten!

[@Interbeing_CDN]

Well done Trond! Thanks for sharing!

[@allanternent8862]

Great as always tron and nice pictures

[@TBuanes_Photography]

Beautiful bird and really nice shots :)

[@zenphotojourney]

Those are beautiful shots and videos!

[@CamillaI]

Great technique Trond some lovely shots ! 👍😍

[@trondwestby5264]

Thanks a lot!

[@alanmacleay6213]

Your cabin looks like its in a great spot!

[@MultiGoetz]

I love your videos😎😎

[@trondwestby5264]

I am glad....thanks for the support!

[@PietroGiannelli-qo2eq]

Grazie per i preziosi consigli dati per catturare l'uccellino con le ali aperte. Anche a me piacerebbe scattare questa composizione ali aperte. Ti seguo con attenzione per "rubare" altri consigli utili. Tanti complimenti.

[@KevinNordstrom]

Great video Trond. What beautiful birds. That z9 is sounds lightening fast. I also dig your cottage. Seems really cozy.

[@trondwestby5264]

Thanks a lot Kevin! 20 fps is nice to have :)

[@johnhjic2]

Hello Trond so lovely image. Great work.

[@trondwestby5264]

Hello John! Thank you so much, glad you liked it.

[@angelaknight903]

Thank you so much Excellent I got photos of pied flycatchers this year here in wales they are brilliant little birds not really at your standard thank you Trond 👍 😊

[@trondwestby5264]

Thank you Angela! So glad you liked the video.

[@norskattforfun8575]

Great video. I was thinking about how much work you put into your videos and it is truly appreciated. Gorgeous photos too

[@trondwestby5264]

Thanks a lot! It is some work, but I love to share my trips with you :)

[@naturenature2439]

Awesome video Trond 👍👍

[@trondwestby5264]

THank you!

[@briansbuildsandoutdoors4936]

'Another day in my cabin'...I'm so jealous.😁 I wish I had a cabin in the bush. For now I'll just have to settle for being able to get out in the bush whenever I want. Love your videos Trond, keep up the good work mate. All the best, Brian.

[@malcolmross3782]

Hello Trond, yet again using you skill along with patience you have achieved some awesome photographs. Thanks for sharing and continue to stay safe 😷

[@jeffolson4731]

Trond, you have a great cottage. I really enjoy your videos and the pictures you capture. I agree with others, that last image is stunning. Flapping wings and food in beak, wow!

[@trondwestby5264]

Thank you Jeff! I am really pleased with the place :)

[@edbritelight7683]

Great work Trond!! I like the final image in the video the best 🥰👍! Keep it up

[@trondwestby5264]

Thanks a lot Ed! Glad you liked it. And thanks for your support!

[@iandanielson5090]

I'm running out of words Trond for your images absolutely fantastic. I can't imagine what is coming next.

[@keithdickson8364]

Beautiful shots Trond. That’s a job just going through all those shots to get the perfect ones. Great job.

[@laku4412]

Woooooow, awesome shots as always! There's not much more beautiful than sitting in the forest when it rains and watching some beautiful birds, thank you for the nice video! :)

[@trondwestby5264]

Thank you so much!

[@victorlim5077]

Amazing as always, Trond. Great photos.

[@LeonardoRodriguez-op9rv]

Awesome video, as always Trond, really enjoyed to watch it. I loved the pictures you made, specially the ones of the bird with the open wings and motion blur on them.

[@LouisaLee63]

Wonderful video and your photographs are incredible! I really enjoyed the early bit when you showed us taking the still images and switched to video mode and then showed us that video! Very nice sequence!!

[@russellwebb3672]

Hi, just a suggestion but use a wired remote saves keeping the camera from moving and much easier and quicker to take the images. Russ.

[@cliftonwhittaker260]

Another fine photography adventure, Trond. I have many shots of birds and deer in our backyard. One of them, using the technique you used in this video of prefocusing on the perch, won Best of Show in an exhibit last Feb. There were 81 entries. :)

[@trondwestby5264]

Thank you Clifton! So glad you enjoyed it. Ahh...thats awesome. Congrats!

[@PapaVeedy]

Fantastic work Trond! Love the photos!

[@trondwestby5264]

Thank you Dusty!

[@JaminTaylor]

Beautiful bird! Love seeing some new species you haven’t shown us before. The habitat looks so much like Alaska, I think you would feel right at home up here.

[@iancole9854]

Another enjoyable video Trond. Its good to see that you don't always need to travel for miles to get great shots. Often we can overlook the birds which are around us. I imagine you find a lot of peace at your cabin. I wish more people understood the benefits of getting outdoors and spending time in nature. For those people that can't then your videos are a great substitute.

[@trondwestby5264]

Thanks a lot Ian! Thats the beauty of photography, there are so much exciting wildlife just around our doorstep :)

[@BirdShutterbug]

What a beautiful place to enjoy your cabin! Really appreciate the time you take to make and share these videos and tips with us. I may have missed it but what aperture do you prefer to use in these shots?

[@clivewelch1025]

Hi Trond man I love watching you at work in your videos and you got some awesome wing spread pictures, it was nice to see the other side to your trips to the cottage as well with the indoor footage. Until next time take care and stay safe my friend.

[@Rob.1340]

👍📷😎

[@gregwilsonnaturephotography]

Hey Trond, exciting video! I've been waiting for videos at your cottage! It looks like a great place to enjoy and for photography. After time in the blind or just out in the area to come back for a fire and something to eat would be awesome! Looks like lots of opportunities for you. Thanks for sharing with us! Greg

[@trondwestby5264]

Hey Greg! Glad you liked the video. Yes its a great place. I love it here. :)

[@StianTorp]

How many pics does tour camera shoot pr sec? Great video Trond👍

[@trondwestby5264]

It is 20 frames pr second in RAW :) Thank you !

[@dance2jam]

Trond, it was enjoyable seeing you have a great time photographing the pied flycatcher and make use of Custom Wide Area (surprised it didn't grab the branch to focus on). but your first techniques comments came after nearly 7 minutes of a 10:40 min video. This felt more like a share my experience video than a sharing my best bird photography techniques video. Just in my opinion, it would be nice if the distinction were more clear from the outset. Otherwise, thanks for sharing your fun.

[@trondwestby5264]

Thank you so much for your honest feedback. Really appreciate it.

[@penorvoll]

Kjempeflotte bilder igjen Trond! :) Og topp inspirerende video som vanlig!

[@trondwestby5264]

Tusen takk Pål!

[@rogersmith4308]

Trond, great video and images as always! Quick question if you catch this, it looks like you have a combination lens cover on, the camo up front and looks like a silicone cover on the rear part. Is that silicone section separate, and if so what product is it? Thanks!

[@trondwestby5264]

Thank you so much Roger! The lense cover is a part of a item called camshield made by a company called Tragopan.

[@danieliovidiu]

Hello Trond Great video, I have a question about the AE-L, what button do you use to activate when you shoot? I have also the Z9 and still learning. Thank you!

[@maxmillion4216]

Hi Trond, I noticed you shoot in Manual mode. Do you ever shoot in Aperture priority with auto ISO...?

[@JoeMaranophotography]

You should try out pro capture on Olympus or pre burst on Panasonic! It's almost impossible to miss a take off or landing! It's amazing! You could always film in 4k and extract stills from it too :) Awesome shots regardless:)

[@victorlim5077]

It's already available on the Z9 in jpeg mode 30fps or 120fps.

[@JoeMaranophotography]

@@victorlim5077 Didn't know it was starting to spread now. Nice. Shame no raw though :(

[@victorlim5077]

@@JoeMaranophotography Yes, no RAW currently. Hopefully the feature makes it to the 20fps RAW mode. Together with the compact 400mm F4.5 and 800mm F6.3 PF prime lenses, this combo will be very interesting.

[@JoeMaranophotography]

@@victorlim5077 Haha I'm never going to have that sort of money :)

[@victorlim5077]

@@JoeMaranophotography Nor do I but I can dream. :-) Waiting for the technology to trickle down. Currently still using a DSLR.

[@ruudbeentjes5124]

Hi Trond , what brown protection do you have on your Lens , thank you from Holland

[@fnix6636]

What is that book you were reading in the beginning? It looks really interesting

[@robertgrant1509]

Trond, Sir - Great video! Thank you for sharing, both the fantastic bird images and your blind setup. Which brand covering do you have on your lens? Thanks…

[@frafasticsworld5284]

Awesome video. Is it an innkeeper that you had used before, or you are lucky enough to put them and after a while the bird arrives? Greetings.

[@trondwestby5264]

Thank you so much! I placed some sticks in the area where the box are. And they use it as a high point

[@pascalthiebaud]

Why sharpness everywhere? I feel sometimes an obsession about sharpness amongst photographer while the blurred brings poetry. In life not everything is sharp. What do you think Trond?

[@trondwestby5264]

Hi Pascal! I am not sure if I get your question correctly ? To sharpen my images I use ether AI sharpening or Denoise from Topaz Labs.

[@pascalthiebaud]

@@trondwestby5264 yes me too but the question was about the "dictatorship" of sharpness. Sometimes I feel, when I look at other photographer, that everything in a picture should be sharp and I think that blur can bring a kind of poetry in a picture. And I wanted to know your thought about that.

[@Granfoss]

Do you use the Lossless compression or the compressed * version? Size on memory card? 🤓

[@ockie50]

Seriously, are you drinking Coca-Cola with your dinner???

[@bruceterrill8730]

Sick and tired of fully sponsored KZbinrs sitting back in all the latest clothing, with all the latest photography releases trying to tell us ;normal; folk how to take pictures with equipment that they have been gifted and we could never afford. Times up. . .no more bullshit.

[@trondwestby5264]

I am sorry you feel this way Bruce, even tho you do not know my story or my brand deals. But I am sure you have your reasons. Best regards!

[@paulbocking8604]

I have never felt Trond does that in any way. His videos are him out in nature doing what he does. I'm sure he does get some better deals on equipment and in some cases gets it for free but he never pushes it. I can't stand watching many other photographers on KZbin as they do this all the time. I think your comments are harsh and not applicable in this case.

[@bruceterrill8730]

@@paulbocking8604 Blah Blah Blah. . .

[@paulbocking8604]

@@bruceterrill8730 very inspirational...👏👏👏