Amateur Photography - Wildlife, Aeroplanes

[BrandonsBirbs]

 

[mdees88]

Really nice images in the "wild birb" thread and your last ones here too. You are getting a lot closer which is giving you more detail. Nice grebe shots, they are so cool. I wish I had some around here.

Here's a tip to try which can completely transform those images. You need to get to the edge of that pond and set the camera flat on the ground at the water's edge. You want the camera to be as close to water level as possible without getting it wet, lol. A couple inches above the water.

You have to fold out the screen and shoot in live view. It can be challenging to find the birds on the screen sometimes and hard to get the focus right, but it's worth it and the images look completely different than typical images.

Here's an example. In the first pic I am above the ducks looking down at them. If you look at the very top edge of the image, that is about 10 feet behind the ducks. The bottom of the image is about 1 foot in front of the ducks.

In this next pic my camera is sitting about 2" above the water. Now when you look at the background, it is about 50 feet behind the duck and the bottom of the image is about 30 feet in front of him. This makes the foreground and the background nice and blurry which makes the duck really stand out in the image.

And this is the final edit, cropped and straightened...

You can do this with birds on the ground too. Get the camera just above the ground so you are completely eyelevel with the bird. Try to position yourself so the background is a long way off too and not real close to the bird. This way it is nice and blurred out. Also, the closer you get to the bird the blurrier the background will be. Like in your last two images in the other thread. The background is pretty blurred out even though it is only 10 feet behind the bird, because you are so close to him.

 

[BrandonsBirbs]

Really nice images in the "wild birb" thread and your last ones here too. You are getting a lot closer which is giving you more detail. Nice grebe shots, they are so cool. I wish I had some around here.

Here's a tip to try which can completely transform those images. You need to get to the edge of that pond and set the camera flat on the ground at the water's edge. You want the camera to be as close to water level as possible without getting it wet, lol. A couple inches above the water.

You have to fold out the screen and shoot in live view. It can be challenging to find the birds on the screen sometimes and hard to get the focus right, but it's worth it and the images look completely different than typical images.

Here's an example. In the first pic I am above the ducks looking down at them. If you look at the very top edge of the image, that is about 10 feet behind the ducks. The bottom of the image is about 1 foot in front of the ducks.

View attachment 3215428

In this next pic my camera is sitting about 2" above the water. Now when you look at the background, it is about 50 feet behind the duck and the bottom of the image is about 30 feet in front of him. This makes the foreground and the background nice and blurry which makes the duck really stand out in the image.

View attachment 3215425


And this is the final edit, cropped and straightened...

View attachment 3215427

You can do this with birds on the ground too. Get the camera just above the ground so you are completely eyelevel with the bird. Try to position yourself so the background is a long way off too and not real close to the bird. This way it is nice and blurred out. Also, the closer you get to the bird the blurrier the background will be. Like in your last two images in the other thread. The background is pretty blurred out even though it is only 10 feet behind the bird, because you are so close to him.

Wow the difference is fantastic! Unfortunately we only have the one mummy and her baby and they're deceivingly small so seem to hide most the time.. beautiful birds though.

I'm so appreciative of your help and tips, thank you so much. I'll try this next time we visit a pond, that last photo is so good. I definitely feel I am getting better but I don't have a fold out screen unfortunately on this camera it is static.

I have just discovered my viewfinder actually works.. is it better to use that then the screen? I've taken Every photo with the screen lol

 

[mdees88]

Wow the difference is fantastic! Unfortunately we only have the one mummy and her baby and they're deceivingly small so seem to hide most the time.. beautiful birds though.

I'm so appreciative of your help and tips, thank you so much. I'll try this next time we visit a pond, that last photo is so good. I definitely feel I am getting better but I don't have a fold out screen unfortunately on this camera it is static.

I have just discovered my viewfinder actually works.. is it better to use that then the screen? I've taken Every photo with the screen lol

Flip out screens make the job easier but you can still do it looking at a fixed screen. You just have to get your head down a little lower. People do it with the viewfinder but it's easier with the screen and easiest with a flip out screen.

It's a lot easier (for me anyway) to quickly acquire and track moving subjects using the viewfinder. I use it the majority of the time. I use the screen for macro and low angle work.

Nothing wrong with just using the screen if it has been working for you.

Those whistling ducks were the first "real good" images I ever took. I did a lot of things right without knowing what I was doing, lol. I had just watched some YouTube videos from Ray Hennessey and Scott keys from the Wildlife inspired channel on getting low. I had to crawl 30ft across a mud flat to get that pic, lol. It was worth it though. Now I just take a knee, set my camera on my boot, flip out the screen and shoot like that.

 

[BrandonsBirbs]

Flip out screens make the job easier but you can still do it looking at a fixed screen. You just have to get your head down a little lower. People do it with the viewfinder but it's easier with the screen and easiest with a flip out screen.

It's a lot easier (for me anyway) to quickly acquire and track moving subjects using the viewfinder. I use it the majority of the time. I use the screen for macro and low angle work.

Nothing wrong with just using the screen if it has been working for you.

Those whistling ducks were the first "real good" images I ever took. I did a lot of things right without knowing what I was doing, lol. I had just watched some YouTube videos from Ray Hennessey and Scott keys from the Wildlife inspired channel on getting low. I had to crawl 30ft across a mud flat to get that pic, lol. It was worth it though. Now I just take a knee, set my camera on my boot, flip out the screen and shoot like that.

Incredible, thank you. I hadn't even realised my camera had a viewfinder.. silly I know. Tried it out briefly earlier and seemed easier for me to follow a red kite flying by. Shows my inexperience.. of course a camera has a viewfinder!! Could help me with dealing with my shaking hands too.. screwed up a few great photo opportunities because of them.

Haha, love the dedication to get that photo, definitely worth it! Looks amazing. I will give this way a go next time I pop to the pond. I can actually get level with the pond perfectly so will be a cool experiment.