WILDLIFE Photography & BIRD Photography Tips - From your Car

You can capture some amazing wildlife and bird photos without ever leaving your car.
In this episode I discuss some of the equipment needed for wildlife photography and bird photography as well as take you out for a drive and photograph waterfowl, snowy owls and other species using my vehicle as a blind.
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[@allan_sh_]

Thanks for a great video, this is definitely an idea I'm going to try when driving to and from work. Keep up the good work.

[@tabbypressNorrieFranko]

HI Chad, Maybe I missed it, but it's best to turn your vehicle off before starting to shoot. If waiting hours in your vehicle, take your keys out of the ignition. LOL I've needed more than one boost after taking pictures for hours. Well done once again.

[@obroadieswimmer]

I do this all the time from my car around where I live in Thailand. It especially helps when it's close to 40C outside and I can sit in the aircon. I also use one of the window shade screens with a hole in the middle for the lens. Nice vlog Chad. Subscribed.

[@ChadBarry]

Another great reason. It gets pretty hot where I’m at too. Thanks for subscribing!

[@SouthernExposure]

Definitely agree with the crop sensor body. APS-C gets a bad name because that's what you find in entry level cameras, but I shoot a Nikon D500 for wildlife and I love the extra reach.

[@ChadBarry]

Bingo!

[@MagicLightPhoto]

Thanks for the video! One thing that I do is keep 3 bean bags of various sizes in my truck with me. All are home made and very inexpensive. One goes over the edge of the window to rest my lens on. If I need to go higher, I add another one. Often times I will put the other one on TOP of the lens to sandwich everything together. Makes for a rock solid platform to shoot from the vehicle. Gulls make great practice birds!

[@ChadBarry]

MagicLightPhoto Great tips!!! The extra weight on top is a great idea. I often rest my arm over the lens even when on a gimbal for the same reason

[@MagicLightPhoto]

I do the same thing when on a gimbal. The bean bag on tops works great as long as you don't need to zoom, or manual focus as it is often times sitting on the focus/zoom rings.

[@ChadBarry]

Great idea!

[@charleenr945]

and thank you for supporting photographing gulls! one of my favourite subjects and excellent subjects to practice BiF and other skills on! Gull Shooters Unite!

[@ChadBarry]

CHARLEEN R I absolutely agree!

[@mickfromcork]

Watching from Sydney Chad and loving your video mate. Never done pics from a car but just might. Excellent tips. I've subscribed mate. Thank you.

[@ChadBarry]

Mick McCarthy Welcome Mick! Good to have you.

[@mgillier]

Love the perspective of the video. It is like I am riding shot gun with you. Great tips Chad. Thanks for mentioning your camera settings.

[@ChadBarry]

Thanks Martha! Glad you enjoyed the ride!

[@bernadettebecher5668]

Thanks great video.

[@koboril9346]

Really enjoyed the video! Thanks for discussing ethical shooting around animals. Way too many photographers in my area bait the owls and other wildlife. :(

[@ChadBarry]

K Oboril Thank so much! And, you’re welcome. Baiting is something I think we always be present in the industry but helpfully with enough education we can reduce it and it’s negative impacts.

[@sheilaburgess7205]

Chad this was excellent...first one I've watched since your intro video...well done my friend!

[@ChadBarry]

Thanks Sheila! 😃

[@markharris5771]

Great video. Both my wife and myself have disabilities so shots from the car are far from uncommon. I also go straight to the 7DII for wildlife even though I have the 5DII and the 5DIII, my main wildlife lens is the Sigma Sport 150-600. Like all lenses it’s well worth the effort of adjusting it and the camera to give you the best shots. A definite "Subscribe"

[@ChadBarry]

Mark Harris Thanks so much! I know a lot of photographers with limited mobility who get some great shots right from their vehicles. I really glad you enjoyed the video and I hope you got something out of it! Happy shooting!

[@MuhammadAwais-cg8xm]

Great in-depth video

[@ChadBarry]

Muhammad Awais Thanks Mate!

[@X_explorer]

Great vid!

[@ChadBarry]

Thanks!!

[@michaelpruitt6828]

Nice Vlog, Chad and some good information for bird photography!

[@ChadBarry]

Michael Pruitt Thanks man! Lots of stuff in the works. I’m glad you enjoyed it.

[@TheClosedpalm]

While I have used this technique myself at times im not keen on it as it gives an elevated position thats less than ideal, especially for birds on water. Some great tips though, thanks for sharing.

[@ChadBarry]

I definitely like getting low as well. It depends on the birds and how habituated they are.

[@X_explorer]

Amazing vid!

[@ChadBarry]

Thank you!!

[@sarahtaylor6302]

Great Video thank you :)

[@ChadBarry]

You’re welcome Sarah! It was a pleasure meeting you. 😊

[@X_explorer]

Great channel!

[@ChadBarry]

Thank you!

[@JonathanMikulich]

Thank you for the informative video. What is your opinion of the 400 prime lens vs the 100-400 zoom lens? I have heard the prime gives a shaper image but you do well with the zoom. What are your thoughts?

[@ChadBarry]

Jonathan Mikulich I haven’t compared the two. Generally a prime will be sharper. There are fewer elements for the light to pass through. Primes also have the advantage of having wider aperture so you can usually shoot faster shutter speeds in low light. Personally, I love the flexibility of a zoom lens to adjust the perspective and framing. Everything in photography is give and take. 😉

[@JonathanMikulich]

Chad Barry Thank you for the response. Very informative. Obviously there isn't a one size fits all solution.

[@JonathanMikulich]

Chad Barry Another question: how important to you is image stabilization in the lens? I understand the prime 400 doesn't have it.

[@ChadBarry]

Jonathan Mikulich if you do a lot of handheld photography in low light IS is very important. I don’t have it on my short primes I use for portraits and weddings because I can almost always achieve a fast enough shutter speed to get a sharp shot. But, when you start pushing 400mm the slightest movement is noticeable. I’ve shot at 400mm plus at 1/30s thanks to IS. I’ve also bumped it out of IS by accident and was frustrated with all my shots until I realized my error.

[@JonathanMikulich]

Chad Barry Thanks again!

[@allenmeador5296]

Chad, what focus case do you use for wildlife photography? Case 1-6?

[@ChadBarry]

Typically, I use Case 2. Because I am often tracking a subject. Case 2 tries to prevent AF from locking into objects that get in the way temporarily like tree branches, etc...

[@allenmeador5296]

Chad Barry thank you Chad, discovered your you tube channel today, love your work! Thank you for sharing.

[@ChadBarry]

Thanks for following Allen! I’m glad you found it helpful. Planning some autofocus videos for January 😉

[@daveysergeant5844]

hi i would love to be a wildlife photographer and get paid doing it.

[@juttakarin]

May I ask where you live? Kind of looks like southern Minnesota!

[@ChadBarry]

Southwestern Ontario. 😊

[@juttakarin]

Oh well that explains that...you aren't too far from Minnesota there...I used to live about 60 miles south of Fort Frances, Ontario for 25 years. We went on a few forays into Canada when it was still pretty simple to go across the border. Haven't been up there in a while now...

[@ChadBarry]

Jutta Karin Schultz Time for another visit 😃

[@juttakarin]

Do you need a passport to cross the border now? I don't have a passport...one day I will get one though...

[@ChadBarry]

Jutta Karin Schultz I believe so. I know we need one to go cross to your side

[@forsterl.stewart414]

Okay so a photograph of a sandhill crane feeding on a ear of corn in a corn field that I placed there at 8 am and the sandhills don't arrive for an hour later sometimes later than an hour, is unethical? They always feed out of these cornfields they have no clue that I placed the ears there. Same when I set up mealworms and seeds in spots near a perfect perch while hidding in a blind. Hell I'm doing them a favor feeding them in return I get the shot....no harm no foul...get it foul...lol. I would never use live animals as a bait,now that is unethical. For owl and predators I use calls and wigglers. That I make my self to get their attention. A wiggler for of all who don't know is a method we pro's use to attract predators in for the shot. It's usually wooden with a spring attached to a wood dowel with a spring and a long string leading back to my location that I pull to raise and lower the dowel. The spring pulls the dowel back down to its flat position. When I pull the string up pops the dowel with a feather attached to get the predators attention. Simplicity in its design and works fantastic. Johnny Stewart call work or I use mouth pieces either bought or make them myself. I have on I made that has a high pitch screeching sound that resemble something in pain or distress that I've used to call in predators like coyotes, fox, hawks,owls and even song birds that show up out or curiosity.

[@iceandfirecoolhd1035]

Thailand is hot how is it frozen

[@cameraman655]

I can imagine some hardcore wildlife shooters watching this and screaming.... BLASPHEMY......HERETIC.....LAZY! While not a wildlife shooter myself, rather a photojournalist, I too have shot from my car.

[@ChadBarry]

cameraman655 LOL. Those ones just don’t want the truth out there. 😉

[@nordic5490]

he he. Drivng around out in the country, I have my 5d4+100-400L2+1.4× sitting on my lap whilst I drive.

[@ChadBarry]

Great kit!

[@Randy-jp6ly]

Vehicle photography? Think of it as a very mobile blind.

[@ChadBarry]

You got it!

[@iceandfirecoolhd1035]

You mean taking pictures not shooting