Bird Photographers - Shoot Small in the Frame

[@peterbowler6524]

Excellent advise, lovely photos.

[@thomasneal7126]

Very nice video. I always felt like the full frame shots have more of a (lack of a better way to describe it), scientific feel to them. where the wide frame composition tells the story if you will.

[@capturingnaturewithsandip]

Nice and beautiful video. Thanks for sharing. Big Like 7

[@njs12706]

Totally agree with everything said in this video 👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻

[@gregbluefinstudios4658]

framing is a great way to add to the story! Well done

[@DanOhPhotography]

I am glad to hear you are producing the video from Massachusetts. I live in Northshore, MA and, am avid Bird photographer. I tried to include the surrounding environment as much as I can but since much of our display is on social media and people look at from their phone. It is hard to show the Brewers small width in the context of the environment. For that reason, I always look at mine and others using a desktop computer with large screen so I could fully appreciate their work

[@photobugz]

I've been using this technique as well and find I really like the results! Placing the subject in the corners is important. It really makes your shots more interesting, cheers!

[@cameraprepper7938]

Thank you very much for this video, I am getting tired of watching so many "zoo" bird photos which are cropped too much.

[@ShawnCarey01]

Thanks for watching my latest video and glad you enjoyed it.

[@Marleydia]

I appreciate this topic. I’m fairly new at bird photography. I’m still understanding composition. I shoot with a Canon R5 100-500 lens, which often means I have more habitat in the shot. I appreciate your insight into framing or cropping the shot. I would love to see more on this topic! Thanks.

[@ShawnCarey01]

Thanks for the comment and glad you enjoyed this video, stay tuned for more tips on bird photography.

[@briandurell]

Looking at your compositions, I can see how this style can be highly challenging. Not only do you need to get the bird sharp, but you have to fill the rest of the frame with interesting environmental matter. Plus you need those clean backgrounds. I’m going to give this a try but realize that getting it all together will be difficult. The bonus is producing beautiful bird photos without having to plug an 800mm lens around.

[@ShawnCarey01]

Brian, thanks for your comment and yes this can be challenging but when it all comes together I believe you can create some great photos. Thanks for watching and hope you will be a regular viewer.

[@MrEcliptor]

I shoot small in the frame cuz I can’t get close enough without scaring things away. Lol😂😅

[@bamsemh1]

Was actually expecting more help on shooting small birds in the field. Got disappointed.

[@ShawnCarey01]

Villiam sorry to hear you were expecting more information. What question(s) would you like to have answers?

[@MrEcliptor]

Ohhhh😂. Lol. You thought the title meant “shooting small birds in the frame” 🤪 You wanna know what I do? I have a spot where I put seed out, I set my lens to manual focus and I point right at where the birds will land. When the little guys come and get the seed I snap the photo. No matter how small or fast they are, the “lay and wait” approach has worked well for me as a beginner. 😊

[@RogerZoul]

some of those warbler shots are nice, but who wants to see that branch an blue background. People who like those shots don’t like birds. The loons at the bottom like that is s crime against the loons. Kingbird, please. The piping plover works, but there is nothing else in the frame and you can’t understand their true size. The grass the least bittern is just harsh. And bald eagle against a blur sky is just boring. Many of those backgrounds just don’t work as the background are not something people want to see. The background needs to be something attractive, not just random weeds, sticks, and whatever just happens to be there. That’s why most bird photographers crop in to get rid of ugly bits.

[@ShawnCarey01]

Hi Anthony, sorry you did not find this video helpful but I think if you look a little closer you may take away some good pointers. I would look at the photo of the male Bobolink for starters. Also have another look at the Common Eider and the Snow Goose. When I get contacted by the Massachusetts Audubon or other organizations looking to purchase images for print purposes they most often want the subject in the habitat. Also note there is no photo of a Bald Eagle as one of the subjects of this video. There is a Bald Eagle in the opening media so not sure exactly what your comment was with respect to a Bald Eagle. Take care and hope you get some good photos this spring.

[@fgb3126]

"Exploring the natural world"? And to evoke that you play hard rock music as your intro?? Somehow that doesn't really suit...

[@ShawnCarey01]

I was a rock and roll musician for many years when I was much younger and I enjoy rock music. BTW I would hardly call it "hard rock". I hope you found the content of the video helpful.

[@ianunwin]

nice video dont like the composition you are using the subject is lost its like you took a picture of a landscape or a log that a bird photo bombed. yes their is too tight these are too loose for me. but its each to his own

[@ShawnCarey01]

Thanks for your reply however I respectfully disagree. As an example, the photo of the male Bobolink shows the bird well but yet gives good context of the bird in its environment and a sense of scale.