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The Little Ones...The Big one...No headed fish...
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Amazing osprey pics!
These two are funny.
Beautiful pictures guys!
A few diecast pictures I've taken in the past few months. The Mazda RX-8 pic was taken yesterday...
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Last but not least is Optimus Prime!
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Yeah those are great photographs. Awesome work Victor.
Any tips for the rest of us? I snapped a few quick bird pictures this weekend and they turned out like complete trash.
I really enjoy those bird pics, victor. How do you get so much area of the screen focused like that? Multiple focus spots?
Thanks. You have to understand the basic principle of freezing motion. You need the adequate shutter speed to stop motion, I say for birds about 300s to 400s the least and sufficient depth of field which is controlled by your aperture. If possible, shoot it at F8. If the shot is in focus, everything else around the bird should be in focus as well. I like to shoot under aperture priority mode, AV. I set the ISO high enough so that even at my smallest aperture, the larger the number, I can still shoot under 400s of shutter speed.
Once you have mastered the above, you have to work with the environment which is beyond your control. Never shoot with the sun facing you. It will create harsh shadow. Always have the sun behind your back. Try not to shoot during mid day. The sun is too harsh especially in Summer. During the Fall and Winter which is OK. Best time to shoot for the optimal sun light and bird activities is from sunrise to 9am. And from early evening to sunset. Birds are most active during those times. They need to feed themselves and to find food at those time. Usually, they are more braver and not really that afraid of people.
Finally, learn to get closer to the subject. The better you can frame the bird and fill it up in the viewfinder, the clear and more details your shot would be. This can be hard if you lack the focal length. If so, you need to get close by being stealthy. Using bushes to hid yourself while getting closer to the birds. Walk slow, very slow. No sudden movement. And find a spot with bird activities and just stay and crouch in that spot for some time. I say in between 15 minutes to 45 minutes. The birds would get use to you and, sometimes, they can get too close. Of course, have your camera settings ready and don't begin to fumble the setting when you need to get that shot.
Focus on the eyes as much as possible. Makes sure you capture the highlight in the eyes...the sparkles look in the eyes. That's very important to express the character of the subject. For composition, makes sure you have already visualize how you want the bird to be framed. Usually, get the shot when the bird is wide open perching on a branch without much in the way. You want your shot to convey the NATURAL environment where you capture the shot. Get down low and on the same level as the bird. Don't shoot the bird from above. Don't shoot it pointing up unless you are capture a bird in flight shot.
Of course, shooting in a dens vegetation or under an overcast sky, or under both situations, can create another huge challenge. That's when you need to use fill flash for bird photography.
Don't forget to talk about how they'd need a telephoto lens, as well
I believe 400mm is the starting point. For Canon, you have 300L F4 IS + 1.4x converter. 100-400L, 400L F5.6. You got money, I mean a lot of money, the 500L F4 IS, 600L F4 IS, and 800L F4 IS. Sigma produces some decent super telephoto lenses at an affordable price. Their 500mm zoom lens OS series. They can be had for under $1000. You don't need long lens if you have a backyard and setup couple of bird feeders which are squirrel proof. That can create another problem. You have to constantly fill up the feeders because the resident birds would rely on the feeders for food source. Otherwise, in the wide open in the parks and nature preservse, long lens is a must. Remember to use insect repellent.
Nice info dude... You and PS-Rage should write some basic tutorials for us here
You're in NYC, correct? Where do you go to shoot most of these birds? I recall you said previously something about Jamaica bay, but me being from brooklyn I can honestly say that i'm amazed we have such a wide variety of birds out here!
First time I've ever tried to capture fireworks. All handheld :
Nice info dude... You and PS-Rage should write some basic tutorials for us here
You're in NYC, correct? Where do you go to shoot most of these birds? I recall you said previously something about Jamaica bay, but me being from brooklyn I can honestly say that i'm amazed we have such a wide variety of birds out here!